Wow what a weekend!!! It was crazy around here and it has not slowed up this week with the DSSP campground opening for business. The weather has finally gotten straightened out and the weather man says we are due for a hot dry summer.

Water temperatures are still lagging behind a bit and it seems to be holding the fish inshore.

The surf has been fairly productive offering a mixed bag of spot, croaker, small blues, shorty stripers and even the occasional weakfish and flounder. Check out the Great Angler feed for pics!!!! Fresh bunker, live bloodworms and frozen bunker have been the best baits.

Beach Plum Island in the Delaware Bay is the hot spot for black drum, Salted clams and live sand fleas are the hot bait.

Daytime fishing in the Indian River Inlet has been dominated by shad and small blues. They are hitting spoons and spec rigs. There are some shorty stripers around in the early morning hours on swim shads and bucktails.

The bigger stripers are around after dark. Some are larger than the 35 inch slot limit. Dark plugs and live eels have been the best baits. Look for the bite to heat up as the full moon appoaches in June 5.

Reef site 11 has been the best bet for seabass.

Flounder fishing in the IR bay has picked up a bit now that the wind and rain have quit. The drift on the south side of Burtons Island has been busy with boats the last few days and as always the VFW slough is a popular drift. Drift the incoming tide from the red roof house on the south side toward the VFW flag pole on Quillens point.

05/26/2020 Tue

Holday Weekend Review

It was a busy weekend even with things partially reopened. The weather cooperated for the most part. Cool and overcast but at least the wind subsided a bit.

Bluefish have been in the Inlet the last couple mornings. Most have been in the 2-3 pound range with a few pushing 30 inches or so. Spoons and bucktails have been working as usual.

A few shorty stripers around in the Inlet during the daytime. Occasional keeper in the mix but the better fishing for keepers and fish over the 35 inch slot has been at night. Bucktails and lead heads with a shad during the day and then dark plugs at night.

The beaches were very busy with surf anglers and the reports came in.

Anita Chandler called in from Fenwick Saturday and reported catching a spot that quickly became bait and landed a 21 inch striper.

Bruce Mears reported a small red drum and a shorty striper from the surf just north of the Inlet on Saturday.

A review of the Great Anglers feed shows pictures of small blues and stripers from the beach over the weekend.

Beach Plum Island is reporting a good black drum bite. They are catching them from boats on the coral beds as well. Shaun Ford weighed a 64 pounder on Saturday.

Gabby Arnone (Wilmington) checked in a 9 pound bluefish taken from the surf Monday morning just north of the Inlet.

Donnie Vanderslice reported good bite for blues and stripers in the Lewes Canal over the weekend. Flounder in Roosevelt inlet as well.

Another customer told us they caught a spot on the Cape Henlopen pier.

Seabass fishing on Reef Site 11 has been excellent. A slower bite reported at the Del Jersey Land reef site.

Hope you had a relaxing and safe weekend!!

05/21/2020 Thu

Memorial Day Weekend FAQ

Memorial Day Weekend FAQ

Here are some answers to the unceasing phone calls... This is by no means and exhaustive list. Please go to the Corona Virus page on Delaware.gov for the most complete information.

1) Yes we are open. Our Memorial Day Weekend Hours are Friday and Saturday 6am-8pm. Sunday and Monday 6am-7pm. No Mask No Service

2) The 14 day quarantine requirement for our of state residents has not been lifted as yet. Go to Delaware.gov for updates.

3) Park offices have reopened and you can buy beach tags and park passes at the Life Saving Station Museum.

4) They have started collecting fees in the parks

5) The Governor has reopened the Delaware beaches as of 5pm Friday May 22. Surfing and walk on fishing is allowed again.

6) The drive on restriction of two people to a vehicle has been removed so long as all occupants of the vehicle are from the same household.

7) The Delaware Seashore State Park Campground is not open. June 1 target date for reopening or whenever the Governor lifts the ban on short term rentals.

8) The fishing report is that its been blowing for 4 days. No report. Prior to that its was shad and small blues in the Inlet during the day and some nice stripers at night. Small blues, kings and puffers on the beach.

05/19/2020 Tue

Windy!!!

Day 2 of blowing Northeast 20 plus here today. Another day of it on tap for tommorrow. Unsetteled weather as the tropical system passes offshore.

It was a pretty weekend and the corona quarnatine cabin fever had people taking to the outdoors to enjoy the 80 degree temps.

The surf report prior to this blow was a mixed bag of small blues, puffers, kingfish and the occasional nice striped bass.

Brooke Timmons (Frankford) posted a 31 inch 17 pound striper caught in the suds on 5/15 in Fenwick. Thats the second nice striper to come of the beach down there in the last week or so. Both were caught on fresh bunker.

Matt Nein reported kingfish and puffers on the surf at Conquest Road over the weekend on salted clams.

Fuzzy Bear had blues to 18 inches on the beach in Fenwick on Sunday. All on mullet.

Ken Christenbury sent a pic of a puffer he caught on 3 R's on Saturday. Rumor is it is the first fish he ever caught on the surf.

The Inlet has been producing shad on the tides most every day. Bluefish in the 2-3 pound range have been reported as well but the bite has been sporadic.

Donnie Vanderslice had some trout on the south rockpile Saturday morning. One was nearly 21 inches.

The striper bite has been a late night bite in the wee hours of the morning. Nice fish to be had. Some over 40 inches (over the 35 inch slot). They are hitting dark plugs.

There are some shorty stripers around during the daytime. Lead heads and silbver fleck shads are the most productive baits.

Seabass fishing on the near shore wrecks and reefs has been very good. Reef site 11 has been a hotspot.

Tautog season is closed in DE waters until July 1.

New bluefish limit is 3 a day for shore based and private boat anglers and 5 a day for charter and head boat anglers.

05/11/2020 Mon

Happy Mothers Day (belated)

We want to wish all the fisherwomen out there a happy belated Mothers Day!!

Had a couple of days of hard west wind over the weekend. Severe blow out tides. The big pond was like a lake this morning. Still blowing from the west today and again tomorrow then it looks like the weather is going to get real nice for the weekend.

Notice: they have started collecting fees in the state parks effective May 8. The bathrooms are still closed.

Beach tags and park passes are only available on line right now. destateparks.com

The Inlet is open to fishing. The beaches are open only to drive on. We are hoping these rules will change later this week. We will be sure to updated the report if and when this happens.

The 14 day quarnatine requirement is still in effect for what its worth.

Decent striper bite reported last night from the inlet. Out on the rocks and inside the Inlet. Some larger fish in the mix over 40 inches but you gotta throw them back with the 28-35 inch slot limit. Plugs, lead heads with plastics are working best.

Daytime inlet fishing is producing plenty of shad on both tides. Small blues on the incoming tide and a few small trout have been reported as well.

Tautog bite has been good. Tautog season closes in DE May 15. Seabass comes in that day. Nearshore wrecks and reefs have nice tog and seabass on them.

Flounder bite in the bays has been hit and miss. A victim of wind and dirty water. Its been productive on the days you can get a drift.

Surf fishing is a mixed bag of small blues, shorty stripers, puffers and some black drum.

Black drum bite on Beach plum Island. Its been a bit sporadic but the fish are there.

05/05/2020 Tue

Happy Cinco De Mayo!!!

They started to pick up a few more nice stripers at night in the Inlet. Good bite reported a couple of nights ago right before the line of thunderstorms went through. At least a dozen fish over the 35 inch slot were reported. Some over 40 inches. They caught a few the next night but not as many. Silver fleck soft baits have been very productive.

Shad, small blues and shorty stripers around on the incoming tide in the day time.

Hearing about a small uptick in the number of keer tautog in the inlet. Weather permitting the nearshore wrecks are producing some nice tautog as welll. Delaware tautog season closes May 15. Seabass season opens May 15.

Flounder bite has been on the bay has been very hit and miss. Water is dirty from all the wind and rain. The VFW slough has been the most productive drift.

A mixed bag of small blues, shorty stripers and puffers on the beach. Drive on beaches are open. Walk on still not allowed. The Governors Emergency Order is set to expire May 15. Hopefully we will get some relief on the lock down in the next week.

Please refer to the Corona virus page on Delaware.gov for the current rules.

05/01/2020 Fri

Pretty Weekend on tap!!!

Looks like the weather is finally going to break!! Beautiful weather in the forecast through Monday.

We are getting many calls from our out of state customers asking if they can come down to fish. Governor Carney's quarantine in place order is in effect until May 15. Please refer to Delaware.gov for the latest info. So the technical answer is no but there sure are alot or out of state vehicles running around down here. Enter at your own risk. Thats the only thing we can tell you at this time.

Beaches are open to drive on with restrictions (these are outlined in recent posts). The inlet is open. You cannot walk on the beach to fish (sorry).

We have started to expand our hours. We will be open 7am-5pm Friday and Saturday. 7am-3pm on Sunday. We will post hours for next week on Saturday.

Surf report - small blues, shorty stripers, a few shad, some puffers and even some shad and small trout. Its been a slow pick with all the wind and rain.

Inlet- small blues, shorty stripers (some keepers in the mix), shad, a coiuple of flounder and tautog and black drum. A little bit of everything. Again its been a slow pick with all the wind and rain.

Indian River Bay - some keeper flounder reported - VFW slough. Again slow pick with all the wind and rain. Notice a theme?

We have fresh bunker, live bloodworms, live sand fleas. We should have live green crabs Saturday.

04/27/2020 Mon

Weekend Wrap Up

Notice: as of 8am Tuesday Morning April 28 you are required to wear a face covering in public in Delaware.

Despite cool rainy weather a few people got out over the weekend.

The surf is offering a mixed bag of small blues, short stripers, blowfish, shad and even a few small weakfish. Its a slow pick but there are fish around. Check out our pics page and the Great Anglers feed!!! 3 R's and Fenwick were the most popular spots.

Surf fishing is open to drive on (walk on no allowed). Restrictions apply - no more than 2 people per vehicle, must be from same household, both must be actively engaged in fishing, and vehicles must be 20 yards apart. Faithful Steward crossing and 3 R's and all of Fenwick are open. Conquest, Tower and Keybox are closed.

Surf fishing tags are only available on line right now. www.destateparks.com and take about 2 weeks to get.

Inlet fishing is a mixed bag of shorty stripers (a few keepers at night), tog, bluefish (some to 30 inches) and black drum. Again its a slow pick. Rain and wind have made for very dirty water.

More rain and cool weather in the forecast.

Delaware is still requiring non-residents that enter the state to quarantine for 14 days. Sussex county is a hot spot for COVID-19 positive cases. Enter at your own risk.

04/20/2020 Mon

First blues of the season

Blowing northeast and raining today (Monday). Weather looks better later in the week. Still going to have a bit of wind and rain for the next week or so.

First flounder of the year reported from the South rockplie at the Inlet. Another black drum caught in the Inlet.

The bluefish also made an appearance in the Inlet over the weekend. A handful in the 24-30 inch range were caught. These are the first we have heard about. By no means a blitz.

A couple of blues and some blowfish as well as some shorty stripers caugth on the surf. Fresh bunker and live bloods will be in Tuesday around lunch time.

Shorty stripers in the Inlet (south rockplie) as well. Lead heads with a silver fleck soft bait are doing the trick.

Togging in the Inlet is pretty good. We have live fleas and live green crabs.

Delaware is still on lock down for Non-residents. You are asked to quarantine for 14 days upon entering the state. So enter at your own risk.

The beaches are open to drive on fishing. Walking on is not permitted. The only place to get a beach tag is on-line and it takes two weeks to come in the mail.

Stay safe everyone and lets hope this ends soon.

04/13/2020 Mon

Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter everyone!! Hope you are well and safe.

Blowing a gale here today. Water is gonna be dirty for a few days after this. Forecast looks good later in the week going in to the weekend.

Still pretty much on lockdown around here.

Big news over the weekend were some blowfish caught on the beach in Fenwick!!

We are open very day 7am-3pm. We have live bloodworms, minnows and green crabs.

Hope to have live sand fleas and fresh bunker by the weekend.

04/06/2020 Mon

A message to our out of state customers

Hi all. As you may our may not know, in an effort to slow the spread of Covid 19 - Delaware Governor Carney has issued an Emergency Order requiring all out of state people to quarantine in place for 14 days if you enter and plan to stay in Delaware. This is being enforced by the Delaware State Police in traffic checkpoints. There were several over the weekend and will likely be more heading in to Easter weekend. Now is not the time to plan a vacation here. Weekend trips to your beach home are not good idea either.

We really appreciate our of of state customers and hope to see you once all of this craziness is over. Until then - Please stay home. Be well, Be safe.

If you are planning a trip down here you need to know this. You can and will be turned away in a traffic checkpoint. They have also checked vehicles at the Indian river Inlet. Delaware liquor stores are now serving Delaware ID only. This is very real!!!

04/06/2020 Mon

Its Easter Week!!!

Got our first batch of live sand fleas. We also have live green crabs.

The tautog bite is very good in the Inlet. Slack tide east of the bridge.

Shorty stripers in the Inlet. The south pocket has been the most productive. 1/2 ounce lead head with a soft plastic - silver fleck. Please be advise you cannot fish from the beach in the south pocket. You must be on the rockpile.

Shorty stripers in the surf too. Customer had a 27 incher this morning. The limit is 28-35 inches. One a day.

Surf fishing is drive on only. Only two people per vehicle. Must be from same household. Both must be actively enganges in fishing.

We have fresh bunker. Live bloodworms are due in Wednesday around noon.

04/03/2020 Fri

The wind is blowing...

Did anyone see the Russian submarine surface in the Inlet on Wednesday? Check out our Facebook feed for the pic.

We get the drive on beaches open and it proceeds to start blowing a gale. What does 2020 have against us?.

Please see the previous reports for the specifics rules regarding the beaches being open to drive on surf fishing.

Many people are saying the tog bite in the Inle thas been better than any year in recent. Best spot is east of the bridge where the old bridge was on slack tide.

We have live green crabs. Still to early for live sand fleas. Frozen bait shrimp have been effective as well.

Schoolie stripers are hitting in the south pocket. You can pretty much through anything at them.

No surf report yet as no one has been able to get out. Hopefully that will change this weekend.

We have fresh bunker and live bloodworms.

Below is a list of the activites that you can and cannot do in the State Parks. The boat ramps are open.

Although services are limited, outdoor recreation is still available in compliance with site rules, to include:

birding

cycling

disc golf

dog walking

fishing in bays, ponds, rivers and streams

drive-on surf fishing with restrictions

hiking

hunting

jogging or running

The amenities not available, open and/or permitted include, but are not limited to:

basketball courts

camping

gatherings of 10 or more people

guided tours, events and programs

playgrounds

pavilions

public park buildings: state park offices, nature centers

restrooms

rock climbing

surfing and skimboarding

walk-on surf fishing

sea kayaking from the beach

sunbathing on the beach

Go Ape Course at Lums Pond

The Brandywine Zoo

03/31/2020 Tue

State Parks Drive On beaches reopen with restrictions

Governor Carney reopened the State Parks drive on beaches effective 8am March 31. The following restrictions apply:

1) must have a current valid beach tag (if you do not have a tag - the only place to buy one is on-line at destateparks.com)

2) no more than 2 people in a truck (must be from same household)

3) both people or person in truck must be actively enganged in fish (no other activities allowed))

4) all vehicles are to be 20 yards apart

5) social distancing practices are to be observed

The following access points are open in Fenwick and Delaware Seashore State Park -

Fenwick Island - South, Middle, York Crossings Open

North Side of Inlet - Faithful Steward Dune Crossing Open

South Side of Inlet - 3Rs Surf Fishing Vehicle Access Open. Parking lot remains closed, surf fishing vehicles with valid permit can access the beach via the air station lane.

Beach Plum is open as well.

Walk on fishing is stil prohibited.

Please be advised that the Governor has mandated that all non-residents entering Delaware must self quarantine for 14 days. This means you cannot drive in from another state just to fish for a while. If you are coming in to Delaware you must be prepared to stay for 14 days in quarantine.

Folks we know the current situation is not perfect. We live in a world that changes by the hour. Please don't kill the messenger. This is a very fluid and dynamic situation. Yesterday we did not have drive on beach access. Today we can drive on again. So please observe the rules.

The fishing report-

We have fresh bunker, live green crabs, and live bloodworms.

The tog bite in the Inlet has really picked up. Slack tide in the area of the old bridge abuttments. More keepers in the mix every day.

Shorty stripers in the north and south pockets (where the beach meets the rockpiles). You can fish from the rocks but fishing from the beach is still currently prohibited. Lead heads with a silver fleck sassy shad are the hot baits.

Blowing northeast today and raining so nobody on the beach fishing today. We will update the report once this weather gets out of here.

03/31/2020 Tue

New Report

03/24/2020 Tue

Daily Update

We have reduced our hours to 7am-3pm. Seven days a week.

Social distancing protocols in effect!!!

We found some live bloodworms!! We have them now. These will likely be the last for a while.

Live green crabs scheduled to be here Thursday!!

The Inlet is open to fishing.

All beaches are closed. This includes the drive on beaches.

At the present time you cannot fish from the beach in the north or south pockets.

The DSSP campground is closed as of 5pm today.

03/23/2020 Mon

Monday Update!!!

Per the Governor's Emergency Declaration ALL Delaware beaches are closed. This includes the drive on beaches. State Parks called this morning to clarify that fishing from the beaches - even walking on - is prohibited at this time.

You can still fish in the Indian River Inlet.

We plan to update our store hours tomorrow.

Fishing has started to really pick up. There are a load of little stripers on the beach. Customers reported catching them every cast at times over the weekend. Small lead heads with soft plastics were working best. They caught a few on live bloods and fresh bunker as well.

The Maine bloodoworm supply has shut down due to COVID 19 restrictions. So we will not be getting any live bloods for the foreseeable future.

Blowing northeast and raining right now and you can't surf fish so we will not be getting any more fresh bunker in at this time.

Cancellation Notice - Old Inlet Spring Surf Fishing Tournament scheduled for Saturday May 9 has been cancelled. Given the uncertain nature of the current COVID 19 situation we have no plans to reschedule the tournament at this time.

If you have already signed up we will be offering you the option to a) be refunded your entry fee, b) apply the funds to the another Old Inlet tournament or c) take the funds as an Old Inlet store credit. We will be reaching out to you soon.

Now for the good news!!!

Jonathan Mather fished the Inlet over the weekend and hit a keeper striper on Saturday using a lead head with a sassy shad. It was approx 30 inches and released. He also had 4 shorts.

Donnie Vanderslice weighed a 20 pound 10 ounce black drum on Sunday. It hit a bucktail on the southside of the Inlet.

03/21/2020 Sat

Beach Closures Announced - COVID 19 Update

Effective 5pm Saturday March 21 all Delaware beaches will be closed in an effort to slow the spread of the COVID 19. This includes the State Park beaches and drive on beaches.

Four day notheaster setting in Sunday.

You can still fish from the Indian River Inlet. Shorty stripers and some tautog around!!! Had a couple of reports of keeper tautog showing up. We hope to have live green crabs next week.

All State park offices are closed through May 15 at this point. If you want a beach tag or park pass you will have to buy it on-line from the Delaware State Parks webiste.

03/18/2020 Wed

Fresh Free Range Wild Caught Delaware Bunker!

Just got a load of fresh free range wild caught Delaware bunker!!! And live bloodworms.

There a shorty stripers in the north and south pockets. Most people are using lead heads with a fleck sassy shad.

Some people have been trying the other beaches with no reported luck yet. Warm weather coming so its gonna pop soon.

They are picking at the shorty stripers in the Inlet as well. Lead heads there too.

First founder caught in OC.

03/17/2020 Tue

Parks Update from DNREC

Synopsis -

Parks, wildlife areas open with no entrance fees until April 30,but park and wildlife buildings, centers closed to public;Fishing, hunting, boating licenses, beach tags and park and conservation passes sales moved online

DOVER, Del. – The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control continues to focus on taking a proactive and preventative approach to keep communities and employees safe in the midst of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, while maintaining operations and services as best as possible.

To encourage Delawareans to be active outdoors and to provide space for activity during the coronavirus period, no fees will be charged or passes required for entrance to Delaware State Parks and state wildlife areas, effective immediately until April 30.

“Times are challenging and options are few, and this is an opportunity for Delawareans to experience our amazing parks and wildlife areas, to embrace nature while we maintain social distance from each other,” said DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin. “Hopefully, people will enjoy them enough that they will want to keep coming back long after coronavirus has passed, so we encourage people to buy a state park or wildlife conservation area pass online to use for the rest of the season and to support park and wildlife area operations.”

State parks and wildlife areas are open, and no entrance fees will be charged from now until April 30. All state park campsite, cabins, bathhouses, cottages continue to be open at this time. Buildings such as park and wildlife area offices and nature centers will close after the end of the day Tuesday, and programs and tours are canceled. Anyone visiting a park or wildlife area is encouraged to engage in responsible social distancing practices, avoiding groupings of people. People can find parks and wildlife areas listed online.

Commercial fishing license sales will continue at the Department’s main office in Dover by appointment only. Call 302-739-9916 to make an appointment.

Applications and information provided for well, septic, air, water and other permits are being accepted by email, mail and phone, reducing direct interchange of documents.

Hearings for permits, regulations and appeals are being moved to phone or video for public access. Details on how to access any hearings will be posted with the official hearing notices.

Most Department-related events and programs, including tours, trainings and special events have been postponed, including the Junior Solar Sprint competition for middle-school students at Delaware Technical Community College’s Dover campus April 2, the volunteer training April 4 for the annual horseshoe crab spawning survey and the “Make a Splash” water education event for elementary students at the St. Jones Reserve April 7. Specific information about the status of any events is available on the online events calendar, parks program calendar and social media pages, Facebook and Twitter.

The Department remains open. Many office-based employees are working from home and remote locations or relocating within offices to create distance among individuals. Adjustments are being made to procedures for many parks, wildlife and field personnel to reduce interactions among employees and with the public.

03/13/2020 Fri

We are open!!

it's business as usual at Old Inlet. We will be open Friday and Saturday this week 7am-5pm and Sunday 7am-3pm.

We will post hours for next week on Saturday.

We have fresh bunker and live bloodworms!!!

No reports from the surf yet but there are quite a few people out today trying in the 70 degree weather. We will post news as it comes in!!!

Short stripers reported in the Inlet every day since the weekend. One father and soon have been catching 10-15 fish every night on the point by the Coast Guard station. They have been using shiny spons and diamond jigs. There have been some fish caught at daybreak as well on the south side on the elbow past the camp ground. Bucktails and lead heads with sassy shadsare working. Alll of these fish have been `12-16 inches. No keepers yet.

Reminder the new striped bass limits are 1 fish per day 28-35 inches.

03/09/2020 Mon

News Flash - Stripers caught in the Inlet!!

The weather is cooperating and the fish started to as well over the weekend.

A couple of shirty stried bass reported Saturday morning and again Sunday afternoon. Bucktails - incoming tide Saturday and outgoing on sunday.. Also had an unconfirmed report of fish caught up on the cape.

Got a report that they caught some crabs in the bays already.

Sign of spring - purple henbit in the fields.

Ospreys will be here soon!!

Its starting! Think spring!!!

We have live bloodworms!!!

02/26/2020 Wed

Live Bait Update

We have live bloodworms, live minnows and live bloodworms.

Green crabs and live eels are a couple of weeks out.

Think spring!!!

02/21/2020 Fri

It's all about water temperature!!

What's biting? Why not? But its been a mild winter. This is a common discussion in the shop lately.

Air temp is not nearly important as water temperature. Right now the water temp in the Inlet and on the surf is hovering around 40 degrees. Striped bass typically start biting around 43-45 degrees.

So when will that be? Best guess given the long range forecast is sometime within the next 3-4 weeks. This is barring a March cold snap that could set things back by a week or two.

Flounder will start when it hits 50 degreed water temp. We are thinking the first flounder will be cuaght the last week of March.

Bluefish start biting at about 55 degrees in water temp. Early to mid April.

Until then there are some white and yellow perch around the spill ways. Think spring!!

02/20/2020 Thu

Emergency Striped Bass Regulation!!!

From DNREC -

An Emergency Secretary’s Order issued by DNREC Secretary Shawn M. Garvin reduces the striped bass fishing quota for commercial fishing and limits the number and size of fish that recreational anglers can keep. The emergency regulations bring Delaware into compliance with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (ASMFC) required 18 percent reduction in fishing mortality.

The emergency regulations were issued since there was insufficient time for Delaware to adopt regulations through the standard regulatory process prior to ASMFC’s required implementation date. The standard regulatory process will be initiated to obtain public input on the state’s striped bass fishing regulations that will replace the interim emergency regulations.

The emergency regulations establish Delaware’s recreational striped bass fishing limits at one-fish-per day with a “slot limit” size of 28 through 35 inches, except for the period from July 1 through Aug. 31, when the allowable slot limit size is 20 through 25 inches in the Delaware Bay, Delaware River and their tributaries.

The recreational striped bass fishery remains open all year, except that retaining striped bass from April 1 through May 31 continues to be prohibited on their spawning grounds in the Delaware River, Nanticoke River, C&D Canal, and their tributaries. Anglers fishing these spawning grounds during this period are required to use a non-offset circle hook with a gap greater than 3/8-inches when using natural baits.

Recreational striped bass possession and size limits have been updated in the online 2020 Fishing Guide, which can be checked for current and updated fishing regulations.

For more information about striped bass fishing regulations, call the DNREC Division of Fish & Wildlife Fisheries Section at 302-739-9914.

01/30/2020 Thu

Scracth and Dent Sale Coming President's Weekend!!

Not much to report. A few people around on the pretty days trying but no catching. Winter has set in.

The next best thing to fishing is getting a good deal on fishing gear. Our big offseason sale is coming up!!!

The warm weather has had a quite a few people asking if anything is biting. Unfortunately, there is not too much to report.

We had one customer in that said he caught two stripers on the beach last weekend. That's the first report we've had of any success on the beach other than sharks and skates since before Christmas.

The Inlet has been slow. A few shad around on the incoming tide some days. Its hit or miss. Very few stripers around. A few people out togging. We do not have any live green crabs left and probably will not get any until the bite picks up enough to make it worthwhile for the truck to deliver any.

The most exciting thing we have heard lately is they have been catching stripers in the Fenwick ditch down near Harpoon Hannahs off route 54. Some keepers have been caught in the deep water on live eels. We have live eels.

01/10/2020 Fri

Warm weather = good fishing?

We have a couple of warm days in the forecast this weekend. 60 degrees Saturday and Sunday. Lots of people asking if anything is going on. Truthfully, Its been about a week since we had any reports. Not many people fishing lately.

So its anyones guess what still might be around. Perhaps some short stripers and shad in the Inlet. Maybe a dogfish on the beach. What bait we have is frozen.

No fresh bait available. No live bloodworms this time of year.

It beats work, so go try it anyway. Dont get many days like this to fish in the winter.

01/03/2020 Fri

Hickory Shad

Hickory shad reported in the Inlet the last couple of mornings.

The Old Inlet will be away at a trade show from Jan 4-9. Please call 302-227-7974 for the lastest fishing report.

12/31/2019 Tue

Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year from the Crew at Old Inlet!

2020 Delaware Fishing Licenses will be available on January 1, 2020

We will be open New Years Day 7am-3pm

Still have some short stripers around in the Inlet mostly on the daytime incoming tides. The point by the Coast Guard station has been productive over the last few days.

Water temp is hovering around 45 degrees. It will be pretty much over for the winter once it drops below 43 degrees.

Nothing reported in several weeks from the surf.

The are picking at the tautog on the Inlet.

Better tautog fishing has been on the reefs and wrecks further offshore.

They are trolling up some striped bass south of Ocean City.

12/23/2019 Mon

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas from the Crew at Old Inlet

We will be open 9am-1pm on Christmas Eve for your last minute shopping needs!

Close Christmas Day and reopen Thursday December 26 at 7am til 3pm. Winter hours are 7am-3pm seven days a week, Unless it snows alot. Call ahead.

Water temp on the beach has fallen to 45 degrees. Mostly sharks and skates out there.

Shorty stripers around in the Inlet. Both sides of the tide on bucktails.

The offshore trolling action for stripers has been hit and miss. Lots of boats out saturday with only a hand full reporting any action. Most of the boats were down of Bethany and Fenwick.

12/19/2019 Thu

Christmas Time!!

Baby its cold outside! BRR!

Short stripers in the Inlet. Those putting in the time are catching a few fish on bucktails, swim shads and soft plastics on lead heads. North side on the incoming tide and south side on the outgoing.

Still some tautog around along the rocks. We have live green crabs.

One keeper striper caught on the surf that we have heard about recently. One short as well. Not many people fishing the beach lately.

We will be open 9am-1pm Christmas Eve and closed Christmas Day. Reopen Thursday December 26. 7am-3pm. Seven days a week.

12/09/2019 Mon

Rockfish on the troll!!

Been a while since we updated the report, because nothing had really changed.

But!!!

They started catching striped bass on the troll in Delaware waters over the last couple days. We saw several boats chasing birds just outside the Inlet yesterday. One boat had 15 fish with 8 keepers for the 4 anglers on board.

Rain slowed them down this morning but several boats went back out this afternoon.

They also trolled some up about two miles off of Sea Colony as well.

Stretch 25's and Mojos were doing the trick!!

Inlet report is still shorts on both tides during the day. Bucktails, swim shads and soft baits and lead heads.

Live eels at night if you want a better shot at a keeper. Full moon in a few days so it should help.

Tautog action is still good on live green crabs, Sand fleas are done for the year.

Beach has been nothing but sharks and skates but maybe these stripers will come close to shore!! Fresh bunker is done for the year!

Old Inlet Christmas Party

Saturday December 21

Noon til 3pm

Complimentary Food and Beverages

Ugly Christmas Sweater Optional!

11/21/2019 Thu

Bait Update

We will be open Thanksgiving Day 7am-Noon!!

We have fresh bunker!!

Also have live green crabs, live fleas, live eels and live minnows. Bloodworms are done for the season.

Surf has settlled down and the water has cleared up from the blow last weekend. Mostlhy sharks and skated reported from the suds.

Togging is good in the Inlet.

Striper action is steadily improving, See the previous reports for the details.

11/16/2019 Sat

Things are heating up

The daytime striped bass bite has picked up and is producing mostly short fish but there are a few keepers in the mix . We've heardof/seen two over thirty inches over the last few days. Bucktails and swim shads are working best. The last of the outgoing tide and first of the incoming tide have been the best time to fish.

Night time bite has been fair with a better shot at a keeper. Live eels are the preferred bait and we have them!! Inlet has been full of cob mullet at night.

Speckled trout are still in the south pocket most evenings and mornings. You can fish them from the rocks or the beach. Lead heads with soft plastics are the best bait.

Tog bite is good in the Inlet. We have sand fleas and green crabs.

Not many people fishing the surf. Most spiny dogs. Note: Surf is really rough on Saturday. Blowing Northeast.

Live bloodoworms are done for the season.

All 2020 Delaware State Park passes including beach tags will be on sale starting Dec 6, 2019. There will be a cap of 17,000 beach tags. So get it early. You can buy them on-line. Do yourself a favor and buy a two year tag.

11/07/2019 Thu

Speckeled trout, stripers, weakfish and tautog

Tog fish is still very strong at the Inlet. One customer reported catching 3 over 18 inches over the last week and mutliple people have told us about the 21 incher a couple of days ago. We have liev sand fleas and green crabs.

Surf fishing is hit and miss. Alot of spiny dogs around. A few shorty stripers out there but its very sporadic. We have live bloodworms. No fresh bait available at this time.

Reports of speckle trout and weakfish from the south rockpile over the last couple of nights. They are hitting soft plastics on a lead head. Opening Night has been a good color.

Had a report from a local of 2 30 plus inch striped bass taken on live eels this week. The bite has been and should improve with the cold weather coming.

Cold snap coming!!

Be sure to follow or Great Anglers feed for daily fishing pics. The app is free to download.

Please call 302-227-7974 for the lastest fishing report.

11/04/2019 Mon

The lastest....

Tautog bite in the Inlet has been pretty good. Lots of people out fishing this past weekend. Green crabs and sand fleas are both working. Live sand fleas are available with the water temp still so warm. Front moving through later this week so that could make them go deep. Water temp on the beach is 64 degrees.

Weekend sruf report - The surf was covered up with dogfish sharks. Before that there had been some small blues around and short stripers. Time for the migration to start!!! Nudge nudge!!

They are picking at the keeper stripers at night in the Inlet on live eels. Speckle trout and weakfish were caught in the inlet last week up until the strong blow late in the week. They should still be there. Soft plastics on a lead head were working,

It's wreck fishing season!! The boats have been running, weather permitting, and the wrecks are producing!!

Be sure to check out our Great Anglers feed for daily fishing pictures. The App is free!!

10/23/2019 Wed

more reliable sources!!

Customer Doug Sikes sent us this surf report from the weekend -

Had the chance to come down over the weekend stopped in your shop Friday and Saturday. We did some surf fishing Friday afternoon got 12 small blues in like 2 hours on mullet rigs. Saturday was a great day got about 50 small blues and 1 small flounder all on mullet rigs. Had to hold the rod and feel for them but they were hitting about every cast.

Old Inlet webmaster will be out of the office next week. Call 302-227-7974 for the latest fishing info.

10/22/2019 Tue

Reliable Sources - Indian River Inlet Report

Spent some time yesterday talking to some reliable sources about the Indian River Inlet fishing report. All asked for anonymity for fear of the secret code words and handshake being changed on them,

There have been a couple of 30 plus inch stripers caught over then last week. All at night. Do not know exactly what bait but with the way eels are selling.

There are a few weakfish around two. Some more than 20 inches. Speckled trout have been caught in the pockets at night on both sides.

In all they say the bite has been decent. Definently worth the time and effort to venture out. Like the old timers say - You gotta put in the time to catch the fish.

10/21/2019 Mon

Better Weather Coming!

Another Fall weekend another bunch of wind and rain.

If the weather man is to be believed, better fishing weather is coming. And maybe the Fall run will get started.

Not much to report from the surf from the weekend. We did get a report of a few fish caugh in the beach in the Assategue Tournament. Nothing much reported up this way.

Tog action on the Inlet is picking up. Still alot of throw backs. One customer did report an 18 inch keeper Sunday morning.

Best bet in the Inlet this coming week will be the night time striper action with live eels. Early morning bite could be good too on plugs/lures depending on the tide.

Scott Rattle (Columbia PA) stopped in to weigh a 5 pound triggerifsh caugth on Reef Site 10 over the weekend.

We will be sure to update the report later this week and the weather and hopefully the fishing improves.

10/12/2019 Sat

Storm Fishing

Had water in the store again last night on the high tide. We are open!! The tide this morning is high but does not look like it will bring any water into the store.

Had a few people out fishing yesterday. One customer reported good a good tautog bite on green crabs. Said he caught 27 releasing all but one which was a keeper at 16.5 inches. He also caught one 21 inche striped bass.

Another reported catching 6 stripers on swim shads. The largest being 20 inches.

There are a few boats in the Inlet this morning. Not a truck on the beach. For good reason. It is a mess out there. The swell has started to lay down a bit.

Be carreful if you venture out there. Overwash has made the beach like oatmeal. It needs a few days to dry out.

10/11/2019 Fri

Storm Update

Extreme high tides. Store flooded Friday morning. About an inch of water. Just enough to be a pain. We are not out of the woods yet as the winds are still pretty strong from the north and there is a heavy onshore swell. So we will see what the tide this evening brings. We are open as we dry out!!

The DMS tournament scheduled for this weekend has been cancelled. Please see the DMS Facebook page or website - dmsclub.org for updated information.

We met with Parks staff this morning. They are not going to close the ramps or beaches but it is a ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK weekend. Expect troughs and overwash conditions. There will be very little beach for two hours before and after high tide. Parks staff is asking thay your please refrain from driving in the dune!! If you get stuck you are on your own!!!

The beach is pretty much unfishable at present.

There are a few people trying to fish the Inlet today. We'll let you know if they have any luck.

10/08/2019 Tue

Monsoon Report

Holy Monsoon Batman. Rainy and Northeast twenty plus knots. More of the same in the forecast for tomorrow.

Beaches are taking a beating.

Will update on Thursday after this blows through. DMS surf fishing tournament scheduled for the weekend. Will keep you posted!!

10/04/2019 Fri

Its a Fall Weekend!!

Breezy and cooler around here today. Feels more like fall.

The inlet is loaded with finger mullet.

Water is a bit dirty so you will need something shiny on the end of your line of you want to try to catch a fish. There are some snapper blues around on the daytime incoming tide.

Night time tides have been producing a few more keeper stripers on live eels.

Starting to see more tautog anglers which we will take as a sign of an improving bite as the temps cool. A few sheepshead and triggerfish in the mix too.

The surf is producing small blues. They even caught them in this dirty water today in the 13-16 inch range.

The DMS Surf Fishing Tournament will be held on Saturday and Sunday, Ocotber 12-13. Still plenty of time to sign up!! Check out www.dmsclub.org for info.

09/30/2019 Mon

Fall Classic Surf Fishing Tournament Results!

22nd Annual Delaware Seashore Fall Surf Fishing Classic

Hosted By Old Inlet Bait and Tackle

Sponsored By Okuma/AFW Hi Seas

September, 28-29, 2019

241 anglers participated in the tournament held over the weekend. Fishing was pretty good with 75 of the anglers scoring more than 170 fish. Blues, flounder, pompano and kingfish were the main scoring fish. There were also small spot and shorty stripers and some blow fish in the mix. Two other fish of note were a nice false albacore and 20 plus inch spanish mackerel.

Open Division

Floyd “Morty” Morton150pts$800 and Bronze Trophy

Lance Cochran114pts$600 and Bronze Trophy

Steve Merrick91pts$400 and Bronze Trophy

Bob Zak78pts$200 and Okuma Rod

Brian Hafer63ptsReynolds Rack

6-20th Place Choice of Prize

Women’s Division

Donna Guttridge34pts$200, Trophy and Nicole Born Rod

Karen Patton30pts$100, Trophy and Rod and Reel

Christa Keim25pts$50, Trophy and Tackle Box

Kids Division

Logan Wierzbicki12ptsSurf Rod and Reel and Trophy

Grand Slam Prize

Brian Hafer 3 different speciesOkuma Rod and Reel

Largest Fish of Tournament

18 Inch Blue Matt Vinson $500 18 Inch Flounder Brian Hafer $500

Bluefish Calcutta

18 Inch Blue Matt Vinson $2,210

09/23/2019 Mon

Tournament week!!

Its Fall Classic surf fishing tournament week!!

Great weather in the forecast!! Its going to be a great event!! Tournament packet pick up/registration is on Friday from noon til 8pm and Saturday morning 5:30Am-7am.

Information about the tournament is available on our website - oldinlet.com

Small blues, kingfish, spot, pompano, black drum and shorty stripers reported on the beach this past weekend. Fresh mullet and live bloodworms are the bait of choice.

Everyone is asking if we will have fresh bait for the tournament. The answer is yes if it is available, The one drawback to this really pretty weather is that the mullet do not school up very well and they get difficulty to find in any numbers. So, we have mullet, bunker, bloodoworms and surf clams ordered. We are confident in getting the clams, bunker and bloods.

The water temperature had dipped into the high 60's after the blow we had late last week. Let's hope it conitnues to drop.

Small blues in the Inlet during the daytime incoming tides. Metal cast spoons are working well. Flouder can be found tight to the rocks using a lead head with Gulp.

Short stripers with the occasional keeper on live eels at night.

Scott Sudbury, Annville PA, weighed a 9lb 4oz sheepshead caught in the Inlet on a live sand flea Sunday.

09/18/2019 Wed

Tuesday update

Small blues and shorty stripers reported on gthe beach at Gordons Pond yesterday.

Small blues and shorty stripers reported in the Inlet this morning,

As predicted, the weather is shaking things up just in time for Fall surf fishing tournament season.

09/17/2019 Tue

Fall-like weather

4 Days of East North East wind in the forecast. Just what we need to skake up the fish!!! And another pretty weekend coming up!! Let the water temperature start dropping!!

Last week the surf fishing action was still mainly small blues with pompano and the odd kingfish in the mix. The fresh mullet run is on!!!

Small blues and the occasional spanish mackerel on the incoming tide in the Inlet. Flounder can still be found tight to the rocks using lead heads/bucktails with Gulp.

Picking at the stripers in the Inlet on the night time tides using eels. Seems ike a few more keepers in the mix every week.

Togging has been slow in the Inlet.

Nearshore wrecks and reefs are producing flounder.

Small blues and spanish mackerel on the Fenwick Shoals. Should be some cobia around too.

The Delaware Seashore Fall Surf Fishing Classic will be held on Saturday and Sunday, September 28-29. You can register on Oldinlet.com or in the shop.

The DMS Invitational Surf Fishing Tournament will be held on Saturday and Sunday, October 12-13. Info can be found on dmsclub.org

Be sure to follow out Great Anglers feed for daily fishing pics!! The app is available for free!!

09/10/2019 Tue

Back to normal

Things have pretty much gotten back to normal after Dorain passed by over the weekend, It took a couple of tide cycles to clear up the water.

The beach is wide and flat making for great fall surf fishing conditions. There is a mixed bag of kingfish, spot, small blues and the occasional spansih mackerel. The mullet run is on so fresh mullet is the bait of choice. Mullet supply has been getting better every day.

Small blues and some spanish mackerel in the Inlet on the daytime incoming tide. Spoons have been the bext bait. There are still some flounder in the Inlet too. Lead heads with Gulp will do the trick.

Live eels are working for stripers at night in the Inlet. Picking at the shorts with some more keepers in the mix.

Flounder fishing in the bay has been decent. Minnows and squid and Gulp are the baits of choice. There are flounder on the nearshore wrecks and reefs too. Spro bucktails with a long squid streamer and great baits.

Check out or Great Anglers feed for daily fish pics. The App is free to download.

09/07/2019 Sat

Open for business!!!

All of the state park beaches/ramps are open!!

Temps in the high 70's. Wind light out of the NW and clear skies!

We have fresh mullet, fresh bunker, fresh bluefish and live bloodworms!!

09/06/2019 Fri

Dorian Update

We will be closing at 2pm Friday. Reopen 5am Saturday morning. We will try to update the impact of the storm on the beaches ASAP. The beach is going to take apounding. The worst of it will happen Friday afternoon on the incoming tide. Fortunately it looks like the rain wil stop Friday evening with the wind switching to north and then northwest by Saturday morning. This should help to minimize the local flooding.

09/03/2019 Tue

Labor Day Weekend Wrap up

Just weighed a 1.25 pound kingifsh caught by Dennis Smith of Fairfield PA. It measured 15 inches and was caught on the south side of the Inlet today.

It was a busy Labor Day weekend. A great way to wrap up the summer and kick off the Fall season.

The ocean is suprisingly calm today. The quiet before the storm. Heavy Northeast winds in the forecast for Thursday and Friday as the storm passes by offshore (way offshore we hope).

So if you are gonna fish this week better make it today (Tuesday) or tomorrow (Wednesday). After that it looks like it will be a wash out for a few days heading into the weekend. It will take a few tide cycles after the blow for the water to clean up and settle down.

Small blues on the daytime incoming tides on spoons. Flounder in the Inlet too. Tight to the rocks. Lead heads with Gulp are the ticket.

The night time striper bite has picked up in the Inlet on live eels.

Surf is offering shorty stripers, snapper blues and kingfish. No fresh bunker in stock right now. They can't net on holidays and it was a busy weekend. Fresh mullet availability has been sporadic at best. More live bloodworms due in Wednesday. Still have a few left at present.

Tog fishing has been a bit better in the Inlet. Nothing special yet but improving.

We will keep you posted about the impacts of the storm.

08/30/2019 Fri

Post Northeast Blow Update

As expected and hoped after the northeast blow, the striper bite picked up in the Inlet at night. Live eels are working the best.

Had a report of Spanish mackerel in the Inley yesterday at the top of the tide. They had the shiners penned up by the Coast Guard station. The fun lasted for about 20 minutes.

08/29/2019 Thu

Beach/surf Update

The winds have subsided and the beach is fishable again. It has gotten really flat and wide. This sets up really well for the Fall fishing season. Stripers love a wide flat beach with alot of wash.

Be careful as the wind and waves took alot of sand off the beach creating a pretty sizable drop off/ledge in some places. Driving down off this ledge is not advised as you may not be able to drive back up over. it.

Bluefish started running through the Inlet again on the tides a couple of days ago. Snapper sized.

Eats winds in the forecast for the weekend. Let's hope they blow the fish in!!!

08/26/2019 Mon

Summer northeaster

Its blowing a steady 20 plus out of the northeast today. The beach is unfishable and the water in the Inlet is dirty. Weather man wants another day or two of this with it expected to lay down late Wednesday into Thursday woith better weather in the forecast for the holiday weekend.

Summer is pretty much over. Where did it go. Fall surf fishing season will be here soon. Northeast winds usually change the fishing for the better. At the very least it should jump start the fall mullet run.

Prior to the heavy part of this blow we had reports of small stripers, blues and spanish mackerel on the beach. Kingfish and spot were in the mix too.

The Inlet report was flounder tight to the rocks with small blues and croakers on the incoming tide. Hopefully the northeast wind will pick up the striper bite in the Inlet. Stripers like it sloppy!!!!

Fall Surf fishing tournament season is fast approaching.

The Delaware Seashore Fall Surf Fishing Classic will be held on Saturday and Sunday, September 28-29. Info available on Oldinlet.com

The DMS Invitational Surf Fishing Tournament will be held on Saturday and Sunday, October 12-13. Info available on dmsclub.org

As always be sure to check out of Great Anglers and Facebook feeds for fishing pics!!!

08/21/2019 Wed

Unicorn Alert

Twelve year old Caleb O'Keefe weighed a 2.5 pound trout caught in the Inlet today on a spec rig. Picture is on our Facebook page!!

08/19/2019 Mon

It's Monday

Afternoon thunderstorm. Good time to write a fishing report.

Bluefish in the 15-18 inch range in the Inlet this morning on the tide. Croaker bite has picked up again in the Inlet.

Croakers in the bay too. Small blues are back there as well.

Kingfish and pompano on the beach. A few small blues around too.

Spot bite up at the Cape Henlopen pier has been good.

The Flounder Pounder tournament had a great turnout. Seems most of the big fish were caught within 4 miles of the beach. Had several boats report limiting out on keepers in the Inlet. Tight to the rocks.

Fresh mullet is starting to show. Not in great numbers. We have a few fresh to sell but the supply has been eradic at best.

Check out our Great Anglers feed for daily fishing pics.

08/15/2019 Thu

Fish Bites Bloodworms back in stock!!

Finally have Fishbites bloodworms back in stock.

Fishing report is pretty much the same.

Kingfish, small blues, croakers and a few pompano in the surf. Live and fake bloods working the best. Sharks at night!!!

The daytime tides in the Indian River Inlet are yielding some small blues, shad a few croaker, and flounder (tight to the rocks).

Picking at the short stripers with the occasional keeper on the night time tides. Live eels are the preferred bait.

Flounder Pounder tournament this weekend so we are sure to get a very accurate flounder report. Our sources tell us the larger fish are outside the Inlet migrating toward the Old Grounds. Sixty feet of water may just be the magic number.

08/05/2019 Mon

Kingfish!!!

The kingfish bite on the beach is still very strong. And they are getting bigger. We've seen several over 13 inches and some pushing 16 inches lately. It is likely that these a true southern kingfish brought here by the really warm water. We have live bloodworms. Still out of Fishbites Bloodworms. Expect to have them back in any day now.

Speaking of warm water, it has really got things in the Inlet messed up. It is hit and miss. Everything is here but there is no real consistency to the bite. Some blues and shad on the incoming tide. Gavin Ciampoli landed a 12 pound bluefish in the Inlet on Saturday. Strange that there are still some big ones around.

Tautog bite in the inlet is almost non-existsent with the water being so warm. Oddly enough the triggerfish, black drum and sheepshead bite should be good but it is not.

Its one of those summers that you can take everything you know about fishing the Inlet and throw it overboard. Just go down there are start making it up as you go.

The flounder and croaker bite has slowed down. Again same theme. Water is just too warm.

A few short stripers around at night on live eels and live sand fleas.

Good spot bite up on the Cape Henlopen pier. Great place to take kids.

Near shore flounder bite is slow. Captains are reporting that surface temps are high but bottom temps are in the low 50's.

Best of luck to the 404 boats fishing the OC White Marlin Open chasing the 6.1 million dollars in prize money!!!

07/29/2019 Mon

Update on bait shortage and report

So they kingfish bite on the beach is so good and/or there are so many people fishing that we ran out of live bloodworms on Sunday. We will be getting more in Tuesday afternoon.

And it looks like we will be getting more Fish Bites Bloodworms in Wednesday afternoon It's been a busy summer!!!

Surf report - plenty of kingfish with spot, croakers, small trout, pompano, and sand perch in the mix. Small blues too but you'll need to switch from bloodworms to cut bunker or fresh bunker. The fish are right behind the breakign waves. Do not overcast!!

Picking at the striped bass in the Inlet and night. The water is bathtub warm. It has slowed the bite down. Live eels and driftng live fleas is your best bet.

Best flounder fishing is in the Inlet. FIsh are tight to the rocks. A one ounce lead head with Gulp white swimming mullet will do the trick.

Mixed bag of small fish at Massey's. Flounder been decent.

Still catching spot in good numbers up at the Cape Henlopen Pier

07/23/2019 Tue

The heat wave is finally over!

The heat wave is over, for now. Much cooler, rainy and overcast today (Tuesday).

The heat slowed the fishing action down a bit. More like it slowed down the anglers not the fish. It was really almost too hot to go out side for almost a week. West wind made the flies bad on the beach. Those that braved the heat and biting flies managed to catch some king fish and pompano. A few small croakers sand perch and trout reported as well. Scattered reports of small blues on the beach too. Bloodworms have been the best bait.

This is the best year for kingfish in recent memory. The whole Mid Atlantic coast (New Jersey south to North Carolina) has been reporting good fishing. It's been so good that the makers of Fish Bites bloodworms have run out of supply and production cannot keep up. No body has any! The factory told us they are ramping up a new production line and should get caught up soon. Live bloodworms could be in short supply too. The pickers up in Maine and Canada say it is so hot up there that the worms have gone deep and gotten scarce.

Flounder are in the Inlet in good numbers. There must have been a hundred boats in the Inlet/bay Satuday and Sunday for the Paradise Grill flounder tournament. We heard 5.5 pounds took first place.

The flounder are tight to the rocks so you have to get a lead head with gulp down there to have a chance. The boats have been drifting right along the rocks.

Triggerfish and sheepshead can be found along the rocks. Bluefish have been coming through on the incoming tide. The croaker are around too, Best striped bass action is at night on live sand fleas and live eels.

Inshore trolling has been pretty good. Had a report of bluefish and spanish mackerel on the Fenwick shoals. King mackerel on the 19 fathom lump.

As always follow or Facebook and Great Anglers feeds for daily fishing pics!!!

07/13/2019 Sat

Saturday Update

Quick update -

Not nearly as many people around last week as compared to July 4 week.

There is still the occasional nice bluefish in the Inlet. Sean Dunlap (State College PA) weighed a 12.75 pounder today (Saturday July 12).

Best striper bite is at night. Mostly shorts - floating fleas and drifting live eels.

Flounder fishing in the Inlet is good for this time of the year. They are tight to the rocks. Lead heads with Gulp are working.

Mixed bag of kingfish, spot and croaker on the beach.

King Mackerel reported on the 12 fathom lumps.

Tuna in the Baltimore canyon on the troll. A few boats have started chunking in Masseys.

07/08/2019 Mon

Holiday Weekend Wrap Up

We want to thank everyone for making it an epic July 4th week. The store was slammed. Every day of the week fellt like a Saturday. Today (Monday) we are busy placing orders to restock our shelves. Its been a rainy day so far with a bit of a northeast wind blowing 10-15. Its supposed to clear out later today and the 90 degree plus weather is forecasted to come back.

The surf is offering a mixed bag of small fish. Plenty of kingfish around with spot, pompano, croakers, sand perch, small trout and blues in the mix. Even had a few cusk eels reported. Live and fake bloodworms have been the bait of choice for the kings and other small fish but the blues have been liking the whole finger mullet.

Daytime fishing in the Inlet has been decent. Small blues and the occasional spanish mackerel are htting spoons on the incoming tide. Croakers have been around on the slack tides. Bloodworms, strips of squid and Gulp work best.

Black drum, tautog, sheepshead and trigger fish can ben found in the rocks. Live sandfleas have been doing the trick.

There are flounder to be had in the Inlet. The problem is getting a bait down to them as they are tight to the rocks. If you can get a lead head with a 4 inch white swimming mullet gulp down there you just might get one.

As is usual for the summer, the best striper fishing is at night. Live eels, floating fleas and live eels are effective. There are some keepers in the mix but its mostly shorts.

Please be advised that the 20-25 inch slot for striped bass applies only to the Delaware Bay and its tributaries. The slot does NOt apply to the Indian River Inlet.

Head up to the Cape Henlopen Pier if you want a shot a slot striper. The spot bite has been pretty good up there too.

Flounder and some croakers reported on the pier at Massey's.

Decent flounder and seabass fishing reported from reef site 10 and the B Buoy/Old Grounds areas. Please be advised that the flounder regulations in federal waters now track the state regulations for your port of landing.

Small blues reported on the troll at the Fenwick Shoals. Should be some spanish mackerel in the mix too. Sight casting for cobia out there should start any day too. Reports of lots of spade fish out there too.

Be sure to follow or Facebook and Great Anglers Feeds for daily fishing pics!!!

07/08/2019 Mon

New Report

07/03/2019 Wed

Reg updates!

The summer flounder regs in federal waters beyond 3 miles now track the regulations for your port of landing. So if you are going to land the flounder in Delaware the minimum size will be 16.5 inches instead of 19 inches.

Cap reached! The 17,000 surf fishing vehicle permit cap has been reached for 2019. No more tags will be sold until December (for 2020 season).

Be sure to check our facebook feed and the Great Anglers app for daily fishing pics!!!

07/01/2019 Mon

July 4 Week

It was super hot this weekend. A little better today (Monday)

Warm weather has brough very warm water and some southern fish with it. Spanish mackerel, sheepshead and pompano have been around in pretty good numbers.

Tautog season has reopened in Delaware waters. The minimum size is 16 inches with a 4 fish limit. We have live sand fleas and green crabs in stock.

The Inlet is offering a mixed bag of blackdrum, sheephead, croakers, flounder and bluefish. Some of the blues have been up to 20 inches and the spanish mackerel have been coming through the Inlet on the daytime incoming tide. Use live sandlfeas for the sheepshead and black drum. Gulp, bloodworms and squid strips are working for the croakers. A lead head with gulp bounced on the bottom has been effective for flounder.

The striper bite is a night with the heat and boat traffic driving them deep during the daytime. Live eels, floating fleas and throwing plugs are producing the occasional keeper.

The action on the surf has been dominated by kingfish with croakers, small blues, and sand perch in the mix. There have been huge schools of menhaden working the beach lately. Casting a metal spoon into them has been effective for cacthing the spanish mackerel that have been chasing the menhaden.

Live or fake bloodworms have been the go to bait on the beach.

The flounder bite has been pretty good on the nearshore grass/coral beds in side the three mile limit where the minimum size on flounder is 16.5 inches. Beyond that B Buoy and the Old Grounds have been producing nice catches. The minimum size in federal waters is19 inches.

06/28/2019 Fri

Quick update

Wayne Henderson just weighed a 14.25 pound bluefish caught in the Inlet Friday morning. It measured 39.5 inches. A few bigger blues reported every day. Great for the time of the year.

Pompano hit the surf over the weekend! Quite a few reports of that southern species mixed in with kingfish, croakers, small trout and spot. The water has gotten really warm so the larger blues and stripers are long gone. Bloodworms have been the best bait. There have been a few cobia caught on the surf as well.

There is no hot spot as the fish have been spread out which is typical for this time of the year.

Boating anglers have been reporting decent catches of flounder in the nearshore waters on the grass and coral beds. Everyone is trying to stay within three miles of the beach with the 19 inch minimum size in federal waters. Its 16.5 inches in state waters.

Croakers, blues and flounder in the Inlet during the daytime. Best striper action is at night. The heat and boat traffic are sending them deep in the daytime. Best baits at night are floating fleas/eels and throwing plugs.

There are flounder to be had in the Inlet. Got to a get a one ounce lead head to the bottom with gulp swimming mullet 4 ot 5 inch white, red or pink.

Indian River bay has been slow. Just some croakers and flounder. Not a real good bite.

06/21/2019 Fri

Summer Soltice

Happy longest daylight hours of the year day!! A great day to go fishing!!!

Black drum and sheephead have moved into the Inlet along with croakers. All of the warm water species are here!!

The drum and sheepshead are hitting live sand fleas. Croakers are hitting gulp and bloodworms.

Now that the water is warm and the boat traffic is picking up the stripers will go deep during the day. Best action will be at night floating eels and live sand fleas.

A few bluefish and shad on the daytime tides but its been really random. A few flounder coming over the rail on lead heads tipped with gulp. A few small trout in the mix as well.

The Indian River and Rehoboth bays has been slow for flounder. The croakers should make their way back that way soon if they have not already.

Already hearing up good ctaches of flounder on the Old Grounds/B Buoy (8 miles due east of the Inlet) so the warm water has caused them to migrate out to more suitable water temperatures.

Its panfish season on the surf. Small trout, small blues, croakers, kingfish and spot can be found just beyond the breakers. Live and fake blooworms are working well. The bigger blues and sytripetrs have migrated north to vacation with the Kennedys.

06/17/2019 Mon

Weekend Wrap Up - Spot, Croakers and Trout

June started off cool but summer weather is finally here. Sunny and humid with a high in the upper 80's today. Thunder storms in the forecast this eveing. More of the same predicted for the rest of the week.

Spot and small trout joined kingfish in the surf over the weekend. Bloodworms were working best. The larger blues and stripers that were in the surf this spring have migrated north to cooler water. Hearing the surf water temp is around 70 degrees.

Please be advised that we are getting close to hitting the 17,000 cap on Surf Fishing Vehicle Permits that will be sold this year. Once the cap is hit no more will be sold. As of Saturday morning about 1,200 permits were still available. This cap was announced back in late January.

Also, please be advised that Parks and Recreation Enforcement is focusing on enforcing the "Actively Engaged in Fishing" rule. The regulations require that you be actively engaged in surf fishing when using the Surf Fishing Vehicle permit.

The big news in the Inlet is the croakers have started to show. A few short trout and flounder have been reported as well. Still picking at the keeper stripers at night on plugs, live eels and floating sand fleas.

Not hearing much about flounder in the back bays. Its been a slow season so far. We have heard about some boats heading offhore to B Buoy and catching flounder.

06/11/2019 Tue

More kingfish in the surf!!

Had three days of northeast blow over the weekend. Water is dirty from lots of rain. Going to take a few days for the water to clear up.

They have managed to catch a few keeper stripers every night in the Inlet on plugs and eels.

Surf fishing was productive over the weekend with kingfish showing in good numbers. One group reported catching 50 plus "keeper" size kings on the beach in Fenwick over the weekend. Live and fake bloodworms were both effective.

There was a nice cobia caught on the surf over the weekend as well. Check out the Great Angler feed for pics!!

We will update the report again before the weekend once the water clears.

06/02/2019 Sun

Kingfish on the surf

The big take away from Saturday is that kingfish finally hit the beach in good numbers. Live bloods doing the trick!! No hot spot. Reports came from multiple beaches.

As always check our facebook and Great Anglers feeds for pics!!!

05/31/2019 Fri

June Already?

We've had several reports of weakfish in the Inlet. Reade Carrathures (Milwaukee WI) weighed a 3.8 pound trout caught on the southside Wednesday. It hit a lead head with pink gulp.

They are hitting keeper stripers at night in the Inlet. Mostly on the end of the south rockpile and on the beach side south of the Inlet. Daiwa SP minnows are working well.

Snapper blues and a few shad around on the daytime incoming tide. Metal lures still doing the trick. The occasional flounder coming over the rail too. Minnows have been very scarce lately.

Some good news in that peanut bunker and small shiners have moved into the Inland Bays. The fish should follow!!!

05/28/2019 Tue

Memorial Day Weekend Wrap Up

It was a busy holiday weekend. The weather was great and the fish cooperated for the most part. It can best be described as hit and miss.

Snapper blues and a few flounder reported in the Inlet on the daytime incoming tides.

They are picking at the nice stripers at night time in the Inlet. Swimming plugs on incoming water.

The beach was packed over the weekend. Most of the parking lots for the state beaches were full by noon on Sunday.

Some nice blues reported. The bite slowed down a bit from the good fishing we had for the several weeks prior.

Michael Born (Ellicot City MD) weighed in a 11 pound blue on May 27. Caught on fresh bunker - Conquest Road.

A few more kingfish reported as well.

The Indian River bay has been suprisingly slow. Not much of a flounder bite and a few snapper blues running around.

05/22/2019 Wed

Fish Alert - Snapper Blues and Red Drum

Snapper blues in the Inlet this morning on the incoming tide.

Saw pics of 3 red drum caught on the beach north of the Inlet this morning. All greater than 27 inches. On live peeler.

05/20/2019 Mon

Cast for a Cure Tournament Recap!!

Surf report -

We had 24 teams participate on our Cast for a Cure team surf fishing tournament on Saturday. Fishing was a bit on the slow side but there were some nice fish caught. Eleven of the teams scored 25 fish. Among them were a 40 inch striped bass, a 35 inch striped bass and a 26 inch black drum. A few kingfish and bluefish were in the mix as well. All the teams fished the north end of the Fenwick Island State Park beaches.

First place was taken by team Here Fishy Fishy with 84 points. Second place went to team A@@ in Seat with 72 points. Team Reel Women came in third with 70 points. All three teams received trophies.

The Striped Bass Calcutta was won by team Worm Wigglers with the 40 incher netting them $440. The bluefish calcutta was split between teams A@@ in Seat and Reel Women both with a 19 inch blue worth $220 to each team.

Fishing slowed down a bit on the DSSP beaches as well. But there were still some blues and shorty stripers caugth on the beach.

Inlet Report -

Blues and shad in the Inlet on the daytime incoming tides.

Tog season is closed til July 1.

Striper bite is at night. Picking at the keepers with eels and plugs.

05/14/2019 Tue

Regulatory Update and Bluefish Blitz

Tautog is closed in DE waters from May 16 through June 30. Reopens July 1

Flounder and Seabass open in Federal waters (beyond three miles) May 15. Flounder minimum size is 19 inches with a 4 fish possession limits. Flounder season will be open through September 15 in federal waters. Seabass minimum size is 12.5 iches with a 15 fish limit. Seabass season will remain open through the end of the year.

News flash: big blues up to 10 pounds blitzed the Inlet this morning on the last of the incoming tide.

05/13/2019 Mon

Spring Tournament Wrap Up!!

Had a great surf fishing tournament this past weeked. We want to thank the 234 participants that made it a huge success! And the fish cooperated!

More than 50 of the anglers posted scoring fish. Striped bass and blue fish accounted for all of the more than 150 scoring fish. About a half dozen striped bass over 30 inches were scored and quite a few 20 inch plus blues were put on the board. A couple of short puffers and a short flounder were caught as well. Oddly enough no black drum or kingfish were scored.

Ted Chick took first place with a whopping 225 points ($750). Second place went to Jack Bovich with 189 points ($500). Third place 134 points Robert Thomson Jr ($250). Fourth place 107 points Patrick Blankeship ($150).

The Women's Division was very competetive with 36 participating and 8 of them scoring fish. First place was Samantha Casson with 59 points ($250). Also with 59 points in second place (tie broken by largest fish) was Carla Wright ($100). Ali Grove came in third place with 55 points ($50)

Austin Matthews won the Kids Division with 20 points taking home a surf rod and reel. He was the only kid to score a fish)

The largest fish of the tournament prize was won by Chad Bayless with a 44 inch striped bass weighing 31 pounds ($1,000).

The largest bluefish calcutta was won by Ron Keefer with 32 inch blue ($2,000)

Cast for a Cure Charity tournament will take place down on the Fenwick beaches next Saturday, May 18. We have 25 teams registered for what will be a fun event.

Team Captains will need to pick up their tournament packers with fishing station assignemenst on Friday from 5-7pm.

Bluefish hit the inlet this weekend as well. Incoming tide was the most productive and metal cast was the best bait. Anything shiny!!

They have been catching the occasional keeper striped bass in the Inlet at night. Diawa SP minnows have been flying off our shelves. Wonder what they are catching them on?

North east wind monsoon started Sunday and is getting it done today. Looks like it will get out of here over night. It will take a few tide cycles for the water to clear up over the next few days. Better weather in the forecast. Todays tides will be high and higher!!!

05/07/2019 Tue

Spring Tournament Week!!

News flash - blues to 12 pounds hit the beach this morning. Bigger fish were hitting spoons and plugs. Whole mullet rig working for the small fish. We had reports from 3R's and Conquest road.

Reports of bluefish are coming in from everywhere. Fish ranging from 15-30 inches.

Customer just had a 27 incher in the Inlet this morning.

The bite on the beach has been better but the Inlet is picking up.

Shad in the Inlet as well on the tide.

Hearing rumors of a few keeper stripers in the Inlet at night. But it appears to be a closely guarded secret requiring knowledge of the secret handshake. We'll update the report when we get it confirmed

The hotspot on the beach has been the north end of 3R's road near the Big Chill restaurant. Other beaches are producing as well. As noted the reports are coming from everywhere. Fenwick all the way north to the Cape.

Reports of blowfish on the beach as well with shorty stripers in the mix but that bite has been starting to taper off with all the bluefish around.

Some nice stripers coming off the beach at Assateague.

Nice black drum on the beach at Broadkill. Chad Bayless had a big one up there the other day. He's been working them this spring!!!

We have fresh bunker, live bloodworms, live green crabs, live sand fleas. Live minnows are scarce for some reason.

Surf clams are ordered and due in Friday!

As always check out the Great Anglers feed for the latest pics!!

04/29/2019 Mon

The season is off to a nice start!!

We have been getting quite a few reports in over the last several days.

Customer reported catching 12 blues to 21 inches on the 3R's Road this late morning/early afternoon. Also had a short striper and a blowfish.

Another customer fished the Inlet this morning from 4am-9am. Said there was plenty of short stripers around with the largest being 27 inches.

Shad in the Inlet on the incoming tide all weekend.

Big blues reported in the Inlet on Sunday morning.

Black drum on Broadkill beach over the weekend.

Blues reported on fenwick surf over the weekend.

Report of a keeper founder at Masseys as well as in the Canal and on the Cape Henlopen pier.

A few nice blue reported from the Cape and the pier over the weekend.

The season is off to a nice start.

Great weather in the forecast this week!!

04/25/2019 Thu

Bluefish!!!

Small blues and even some big blues are around. It's not ablitz but they are showing in more numbers every day.

The surf is a mixed bag of puffers, short stripers and bluefish. Most of the b lues are the 2-3 pounders and then the occasional 30 incher sneaks in!!

Small blues and big blues have been reported up on the Cape and on the Pier. A few keeper flounder reported from the pier too.

Ou bunker netter reported some nice blues and stripers in the net in the Indian River Bay. Interestingly enough the blues have not been reported in the Inlet in any numbers.

04/22/2019 Mon

Easter Weekend Wrap Up

Bluefish have moved into the area. Scattered reports of big blues in the 30 inch range came in from 3 R's, the Indian River Inlet, Cape Henlopen and the Pier at the Cape. Its by no means a blitz. They just started showing. Smaller blues in the 2-4 pound range have been reported as well.

Saw a report of a keeper flounder caught at the Pier as well.

The flounder should be in the Inlet and the Indian River bay by now. We've heard some of the locals say they are going to start fishing for them this week.

Shorty stripers are around every day in the south pock and on the north end of 3R's road. Some days better than other. Live bloodworms are the best bait. Blowfish have been around as well.

Short tautog in the Inlet, Not hearing of any keepers yet.

04/19/2019 Fri

Good Friday!!

Happy Easter Weekend!!

The weather is warm but windy. Some rain supposed to move in over night.

Super reliable credible report of two 30 inch bluefish caught in the Inlet this morning.

We got the baits!!

Fresh surf clams, live bloodworms, live sabd fleas, live green crabs and fresh bunker all in stock!!

Shorty stripers are still hitting on the south rockplie oceanside and on the north end of 3R's road.

04/16/2019 Tue

Blowfish!!

Blowfish on the beach today!! Still plenty of short stripers on the north end of 3R's all the way to the south rockplie (south pocket)

A few short tautog in the inlet and the occasional short striper.

A few flounder rumors around. It's time for the bite to start.

We have live green crabs, bloodworms and fresh bunker!!!

Old Inlet Spring Surf Fishing Tournament is Saturday, May 11

Cast for a Cure Team Surf Fishing Tournament is Saturday, May 18

Info for both is available in the store and on this website.

04/11/2019 Thu

Fishing is picking up and Sale this Weekend!!

A good bite for striped bass keeps going!!

The first keeper striper (that we know of) came off the beach on Monday. It was 33 inches and hit a bucktail near the south pocket (north end of the 3R's by the rocks. The picture is on our Great Anglers feed. If you have not downloaded the app yet you are missing out on a great addition to the local fishing community.

Multiple reports of anglers bailing short stripers on the south rockpile (oceanside) yesterday after noon. Bucktails and swij shads have been the working well. A few people were fishing the beach and picking at them as well. Just got a report that annother keeper was caught Wedensday afternoon on the south rockpile.

Had a report of bluesfish up to 20 inches on Fenwick earlier in the week, We have not been able to verify as of yet.

Also, heard a report of flounder caught in the IR bay. We have seen quite a few boats fishing but no firm reports yet.

Short tautog in the Inlet. No keepers yet.

We have live green crabs, fresh bunker, and live bloodworms.

Sale this weekend!!

Customer Appreciation, New Product Showcase

and Power Buy Weekend

Friday, April 12, 2019 Noon til 6pm

Saturday, April 13, 2019 7am-6pm

Sunday, April 14, 2019 7am-3pm

Power Buy Specials – Volume Discounts

Fishbites Bloodworm Alternative – Any color $6 each when you buy 3 or more

Rainy and cool today. Llight east clear and mid 60's in the forecast for the weekend. Good fishing weather.

Bait update -

We have live surf clams, live green crabs, live bloodworms and fresh bunker!!

Also, we got our first frozen shiners in since last August!

04/01/2019 Mon

April Fools Day

Happy April!! No Foolin in this report!!

Saturday was fun day with many customers reporting shorty stripers in the Inlet and on the beach. The bite was better in the morning and tapered off on the turn of the tide then picked back up in the afternoon. Most of the fish were in the 15-20 inch range. They were hitting artificials, and fresh bunker but the best bait wa slive bloodworms. We sold out of bloodworms and fresh bunker. A good problem to have!!

Photographic evidence of this weekends catches can be found on our pictures page, the Great Anglers ap, the Old Inlet Facebook page and the Delaware Mobile Surf Fishermen facebook page. All are great follows!!

The south side pocket (where the rocks meet the beach) has been the hot spot from the rocks/inlet. Jim Haug sent a note that he caught 55 shorties this morning (Monday) on artificials on the outgoing tide on the west wind.

We plan to have live blood worms, fresh bunker and live green crabs this weekend.

Short stripers moved in this weekend. Mostly 12-18 inches averaging 15 inches with one 22 incher reported.

Several reports from the beach of shorties on small jigs and live bloodworms. One customer caught 12 on Sunday down on the north end of 3R's. Near the south pocket.

Last of the outgoing tide was productive in the Inlet with numerous reports of shorties on swim shads and bucktails. This mornign they caught them on the south side from the end of the rockpile back to the bridge. The south pocket should be poductive.

We hope to have live green crabs Friday!!!

We will update this report further as info comes in!

Hopefully these fish will stay a while.

03/25/2019 Mon

New Report

03/23/2019 Sat

Spring has Sprung!!

Cool and rainy weather has kept the bite from breaking out like we had hoped. Water temperature is creeping up slowly. It has been been hovering around 45 degrees. Hopefully the nights of freezing temps are done and we can get some mild spring like weather to get things going.

We did see a pic posted on GreatAnglers.com of a 20" shorty striper caught on 3/20 by Neil Baker OC MD. South side pocket on a lead head with a 4 inch swim shad.

Quite a few people around this weekend. So hope to have a good report to post early in the week.

03/18/2019 Mon

Weekend Wrap Up

Weather was cool and crisp and a bit windy over this weekend. More than 1000 volunteers participated in the DNREC beach grass planting on Saturday. And good many of them fished afterwards but came up empty. A few people fished Sunday as well. Whales and seals were spotted working bait.

Purple henbit has bloomed in the fields and the Peeper frogs are singing every night. Another sure sign that spring is coming!!

We have live bloodworms and the weather forecast is good. Not much rain. Good thing cuz our mud needs to dry out!!!

03/15/2019 Fri

First Striper of the season!!!

Claude "Ducky" Davis caught the first striper from the Indian River Inlet of the season this morning. A short fat 16 incher on the first part of the outgoing tide. It hit a blue swim shad. Reports of several other short fish caught at the Inlet have filtered in this morning.

Check out our fishing picture page for photographic evidence of Claude's fish. And be sure to sign up for Great Anglers!! We are going to start have drawings for prizes for fishing pics that have been submitted!

Dolphins and whales reported feeding on bait just off the beach!!

Live bloodworms will be here today!!

03/11/2019 Mon

Ospreys and Bloodworms

Live bloodworms will be here Friday.

First osprey of the season spotted just south of the IR Bridge.

Beach grass planting and cleanup this Saturday. 480 volunteers signed up!! A lot of people plan to fish the beach afterwards!!!

02/26/2019 Tue

C'mon Spring!!!

Water temp has finally gotten above 40 degrees. Slowly creeping up. 45 degrees is the magic number. Going to take a lot of warm days to get there. The forecast for the next week is for cold weather so its not going to happen soon. Our best educated guess is 4 weeks or so.

Extreme west wind has caused blow out tides. Super low. Its a good time to get out and see where the sand bars are in the bay.

Mark you calendat for our next event Saturday April 13. Customer Appreciation Sale and New Product Showcase. Look for details on our events page in the coming weeks.

02/19/2019 Tue

Yellow Perch

For the first time in a while we have fish to report. A sure sign of the end of winter!! They have started to pick up some yellow perch. Had reports from Milton and Milford over the weekend. Small minnows are the best bait. We have live minnows.

They are telling us that live grass shrimo have been hard to find,

Snow and rain in the forescast tomorrow then its supposed to get back up close to 60. Think Spring!!!

02/05/2019 Tue

55 and sunny

The great weather has brought a few people out to fish today. Some went to the Inlet. Others on the beach. We will let you know if they catch anything!!!

02/04/2019 Mon

Ground Hog

The ground hog says spring is coming early. Time to get your fishing gear ready!!

We have an Inventory Reduction/Scratch and Dent Sale coming up on February, 15-18. Presidents Day weekend. Same weekend at the OC Boat Show!!

We will be publishing a list of the sale items later this week. So check back!!

Nothing going on fishing here on the beach or in the Inlet. A few boats are running 25 plus miles for tuatog.

Gonna get warm this week. Time to shake off that cabin fever!!

01/21/2019 Mon

Baby Its Cold Outside!!

The deep freeze as set in. We are busy working on placing orders for fishing stuff!!!

Be sure to mark your calendar for our 2019 events!!

February 15-18 Inventory Reduction/Scratch and Dent Sale

April 13 Customer Appreciation Weekend – New Product Showcase and Power Buy

May 11 Spring Surf Fishing Tournament

May 18 Cast for a Cure Team Surf Fishing Tournament

May 24-25 Memorial Day Weekend Side Walk Sale

September 28-29 Delaware Seashore Fall Surf Fishing Classic

October 12-13 DMS Invitational Tournament

December 21 Christmas Party

Tournament information and on-line registartion will be available by the end of January.

Information about each event will be published in advance of each event!!

Stay warm!!

01/12/2019 Sat

Just Say No to Snow

Any where from zero to 900 inches of snow expected this weekend.

Not alot of fishign going on. Then again it is winter.

A few people trying for the occasional short striper in the Inlet.

Tautog have pretty much left the Inlet.

And weather permitting the boats are heading out about 20 miles and finding tautog.

We still have some live green crabs left.

Mark your calendar for our big offseason event!!

President's Day Weekend

February 15-18

Friday thru Monday

Inventory Reduction/Scratch and Dent Sale

Deep discounts on over stocks, closeouts and discontinued items!!

01/04/2019 Fri

Live Green Crabs

Just got another batch of live green crabs.

No change in the report.

The Old Inlet Webmaster Will be out of town at a trade show from Saturday January 5 through Thursday January 10.

Please call 302-227-7974 for the latest fishing report. We are open 7am-3pm Seven Days a week.

01/02/2019 Wed

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year from the Crew at Old Inlet!!

Our New Years Resolution is to fish more!!!

Nothing has changed in the fishing report. Still picking at some short stripers in the Inlet. Dogfish sharks on the beach. Decent tautog fishing on the wrecks 20 plus miles off the beach.

Reasonable weather in the forecast so get out and fish. It beats cabin fever!!!

12/29/2018 Sat

Beautiful weather!!

Rained all day Friday. Sunny and near 60 Saturday.

Lots of people fishing. Not alot of catching.

A few short stripers reported from the Inlet.

Have'nt heard anything about stripers on the troll to the north or outside the Inlet.

Looks like quite a few boats will be heading offshore for seabass and tautog on Sunday and Monday. Ther are havign to run 20 plus miles to find the right water temp on the bottom.

Spiny dogs on the beach. Greg Gonye sent a report from Thursday at 3R's road - 12 spiny dogs and 1 skate.

No fresh bait available.

12/26/2018 Wed

Winter is here. Where are the fish?

Hope every one had a Merry Christmas!!

Our winter hours are 7am-3pm. Seven Days a week unless it snows a bunch and then you may want to call ahead.

Well we will likely find out this week whether or not the striper migration is yet to happen or if they have passed us by yet again.

A few boats went out today. And some folks fishing the Inlet so we will pass the report along as we get it.

Looks like warmer weather coming in for the weekend.

The tog bite is starting to slow down in the Inlet. Falling water temps have started moving them to the offshore wintering grounds.

Several boats out on the wrecks today. Winter tog fishing can be good out there if you get the right weather conditions.

We have live green crabs.

Please note that we make every attempt to keep out report current. If we have not updated the report it is very likely that nothing has changed.

12/21/2018 Fri

Winter Solstice!!

The days start getting longer tomorrow!!!

Rain rain go away. Had two nice days this week. A few people giving it a try. One charter captian reported catching a keeper striper on the troll just outside the inlet.

Old Inlet Christmas party is tomorrow Saturday December 22 Noon til 3pm

We will be open Christmas Eve 9am-1pm

Closed Christmas Day and reopen Wednesday, December 29

Winter Hours

7am-3pm

Seven Days a Week

12/17/2018 Mon

Christmas is coming!!!

After three days of rain the sun is shining again. Already 52 degrees out and there are some folks fishing again.

One regular reported catching two short stripers in the Inlet this morning.

We have live green crabs and fresh bunker!!

We should get a better handle on the fishing report over the next couple of days so stay tuned!!

We will be open on Christmas Eve Monday 9am-1pm

Dont forget the Old Inlet Christmas Party is on Saturday December 22 from noon til 3pm

All Welcome

Complimentary food and beverages.

Ugly Christmas Sweater Door Prize

50/50 drawing

12/07/2018 Fri

Fresh Bunker!!

Just got some fresh bunker in for the weekend. Hopefully someone will find a fish!!

The surf report is plenty of spiny dogfish and the occasional random short striper.

Been seeing a few pics of stripers caught on the troll the last few days but no confirmation of where they were caught. Ok just found out that several boats out of Indoan River and Lewes of limited out over the last couple of days but had to go north to Wildwood to do it.

12/03/2018 Mon

December Already?

Big Stripers are just to the north of us. A couple of boats trolled some up in the area of Sea Ilse City off Jersey south to the 8's in the mouth of the Delaware Bay.

Random reports of stripers on the beach here in DE. A couple of shorts on the Cape and north of the Inlet and then a 42 incher caught on 3R's Road Saturday. Otherwise, the beeach is covered up with spiny dogfish.

Fresh bunker supply has become very sporadic and unreliable. Fresh mullet is long gone for the year.

Tog action in the Inlet has been good. We have live green crabs. Live fleas are done for the season.

There are a few short stripers around in the Inlet on the incoming tide during the daytime. Bucktails and swim shads are working. Live eels at producing a few keepers at night.

New in the store. Penn Spinfish VI. Available in 4500, 5500 and 6500. $159.99 - $199.99

11/28/2018 Wed

Big Stripers on the way

The big news from the last couple of days is that the big stripers have made their way to the mouth of the Delaware Bay. Several nice fish have been trolled up on the 8's. Mojos have been the hot bait.

Rain and wind the last couple of days. Friday and Saturday look good with light south east wind.

Lots of spiny dogs on the beach with the very occasional short striper in the mix. We did hear about one keeper coming off the beach at the Cape over the weekend.

Tog bite in the inlet is still good. We have live green crabs. Live fleas are likely done for the year.

No fresh bunker lately with all the wind. Maybe Friday.

11/21/2018 Wed

Turkey Day Week Report

Happy Thanksgiving from the crew at Old Inlet!!

A couple of things going on at the moment:

1) Plenty of short striped bass around in the Inlet. They are using swim shads, bucktails and plugs. A few keepers at night on live eels. We have live eels.

2) Latest news on the striper migration is they are still north of Atlantic City.

3) Tautog bite in the Inlet is fair. We have live green crabs. Sand flea run is pretty much done for the year. Supply has gotten very sporadic.

4) The surf is covered up with spiny dogfish. We have fresh bunker.

5) We will be open Thanksgiving day from 8am-12pm

11/21/2018 Wed

New Report

11/12/2018 Mon

Tautog Bite Improving

An already good tautog bite has improved with more keepers in the mix. Dylan Patrick sent a pic of a 16 incher he caught before the weekend

We will be open Thanskgiving Day: 8am-Noon

Thee Old Inlet Webmaster is taking the Boss to the mountains for a week so call 302-227-7974 for the latest fishing info.

11/05/2018 Mon

Monsoon Alert

Raining with 20 plus knot east wind today. Its a washout. Rain in forecast for Tuesday and Friday. Weekend weather looks good.

Striper migration still well north of us. More later as events warrant.

11/03/2018 Sat

November Already?

Is it really November already? Water temps are sloooooowwwwwly coming down.

The Fall striper migration has just gotten started with reports of some good fishing in north central New Jersey (north of Brigantine).

They are picking up a few keeper stripers at night on live eels in the Inlet. Some shorties around during the daytime.

The daytime incoming tide is producing the occasional shad and small blues.

The tautog bite in the inlet is excellent. Mostly shorts but the fishing is good.

The back bay is full of short stripers. Top water plugs and swim baits are doing the trick up against the marshes.

The bite for small blues has tapered off on the beaches. Had a couple reports of alblues running the beaches the last few days.

Hopefully it will bust loose soon!!

10/24/2018 Wed

Fishing Report update

The Old Inlet Webmaster will be out of the office from Thursday, October 25 through Friday, November 2. Please call 302-227-7974 for the latest fishing report.

10/22/2018 Mon

Good Fall fishing

Still piles of little blues around in the Inlet and on the surf.

Tautog bite is good in the Inlet.

Dave from Harrington called to say he had several limits of flounder caught on the North side railing last week.

Several customers have reported sturgeon skyrocketing in the mouth of the Inlet and on the surf at 3R's.

10/20/2018 Sat

When will the Fall Striper run start?

Now that the air temps have cooled and we have fall like weather we are getting alot of questions about when will the striper run start.

It's all about water temperature!! They are still catching pompano in the surf here so that means the water is still really warm. There have been some reports of pompano in the Inlet as well.

Small blues are all over the place. They are running in the Inlet on the dayime coming tide. Spoons and metal cast lures along with bucktails are the best bait.

News flash!! There were a couple of keeper sea trout caught in the Inlet on Friday.

On the surf they are using fresh finger mullet for the blues and live sand fleas for the pompano. The occasional kingfish is still around as well.

Plenty of short tautog in the Inlet with a scarce keeper in the mix. Sheepshead and triggers are there too. Live green crabs and sand fleas are the best baits.

They are picking at the keeper stripers in the Inlet at night. Live eels are the ticket.

So when will the run start? Keep on eye on reports from Jersey. Latest we heard is thet the bite just got started in North Jersey. Meanin g they are likely severak weeks out from here.

10/15/2018 Mon

Bluefish!!

Plenty of small blues on the surf and in the Inlet. Cut mullet is working on the beach. Spoons and bucktails in the Inlet on the daytime incoming tides.

Picking at the keeper stripers in the Inler at night on live eels.

Recieved a couple of reports of red drum on the beach. One from the Cape on Friday and then a report frm South Bethany on Saturday.

Cooler weather has improved the tog bite in the Inlet. A few sheepshead and triggerfish in the mix too.

Those willing to make the trip to the Del-Jersey-Land Reef site will find flounder and seabass.

Looks like there are plenty of Mahi and Tile fish out there if you want to venture further,

10/10/2018 Wed

Keeper Stripers Caught in Inlet

Had a report of a couple keeper stripers caught in the Inlet on eels over the last two nights.

Looks like storm is goona mess things up Thursday afternoon into Friday.

Cooler weather over the weekend. Lets hope it turns the bite on!!

10/08/2018 Mon

Small Blues!!

Plenty of small blues on the beach. A few kingfish in the mix. Biggest bluefish in the DMS tournament was 17 inches.

Best fishing was on the beach int he tournament was on Faithful Steward just north of the Inlet. Cape was pretty slow.

Congrats to all the winners. Check out the DMS Facebook page for a full list of winners.

Small blues in the Inlet in the incoming tide. Tautog bite is good in the inlet as well. Triggers and sheepshead in the mix too.

10/05/2018 Fri

DMS Tournament Weekend!!

DMS Surf Fishing Tournament Weekend!!

Plenty of small blues and kingfish around. Along with some nice pompano.

We have fresh spot, bunker, mullet and small blues.

We have live sand fleas and live green crabs.

Tautog, sheepshead and triggerfish along the rocks.

Small blues runnning in the Inlet on incoming tide. Flounder have been biting at the very top and bottom of the tide.

Striped bass bite at night has seen a bit of an uptick. Live eels are the best bait.

10/02/2018 Tue

Fun fall fishing!!

Sheepshead, tautog and trigger fish along the rocks in the Inlet.

Small blues, pompano and kingfish on the beach.

Weather looks great.

DMS surf fishing tournament this weekend.

09/29/2018 Sat

Weekend Update 9/28

Charles Fortner just checked in a 15.5 inch kingish that weighed 1.32 pounds

Kingifsh, snapper blues and pompano on the beach.

Nice sheepshead in the Inlet.

09/26/2018 Wed

Hump Day Update 9/26

Small blues on the surf and in the Inlet the last two incoming tides. Evening and morning.

A few sheepshead in the mix along the rocks with small tautog.

Live eel sales have seen an uptick. So the night time rockfish bite must have picked up even though that super secretive bunch at the Inlet would never tell!

Fresh mullet is coming in daily. We have live fleas, green crabs, fresh bunker, fresh blues, live eels and live minnows.

Minnows has been scarce with the extremely hight tides

09/25/2018 Tue

Water Temp is starting to go down a bit

Snapper blues reported in the Inlet on the incoming tide.

Striper bite has started to pick up at night.

Tautog bite has improved in the Inlet, so the water temp is starting to cool a bit.

Beach is stil a bit rough today. Not much room at high tide.

Weekend weathe looks great at the moment!!

09/24/2018 Mon

Fall Fishing Tournament Results

Northeast wind and raining today. A few people fishing under the bridge at the Inlet. Beach is pretty mujch unfishable today. And no one with any sense is out in a boat.

21st Annual Delaware Seashore Fall Surf Fishing Classic

Hosted By Old Inlet Bait and Tackle

Sponsored By Okuma/AFW Hi Seas

September, 22-23, 2018

We ahd 207 Anglers fish the tournament over the weekend. 16 Women and 9 Kids.

46 of the anlgers scored nearly 100 fish. Plenty of blues and kingfish were scored. Small flounder, stripers, spot and pompano were also reprted.

Still have some heavy surf. Drive on ramps still closed. Parks is telling us that they are shooting to have them open Sunday.

Snapper blues reported in the Inlet late morning.

Flounder in the Inlet as well.

Weather has the fish spread out. You gotta work for them

09/13/2018 Thu

Bracing for Impact

The drive on ramps are likely to remain closed through the weekend. Heavy northeast wind in the forecast. The wind is pushing the high tide up into the dune line..

3 R's road is open to walk ons.

Not much else to report. A few people trying to fish. Inlet water is very dirty.

For those wanting to give it a try - we have fresh mullet, bunker and bluefish.

No sandfleas given the heavy surf and closed beaches. We do have live green crabs.

09/11/2018 Tue

Beach Access Closed

Ramps are still closed. Waiting to hear from Parks for timeline on repairs.

3R's Road is available for walk-ons.

09/10/2018 Mon

Back up and running!

We are back up and running!! Website got hacked. Damn Russians!!

Rainy and windy here. Coastal flooding. State park beaches are closed. Inlet is pretty much unfishable. East wind pushing the tide. Very dirty water.

We will keep you posted. More bad weather coming the end of the week.

08/28/2018 Tue

Southeast wind brought fish on to the beach

The southeast wind did its job and brought some fish on to the beach. Spot, kings and small blues are scattered up and down the surf. Some nice pompano in the surf too.

Fresh mullet is becoming more available every day.

Snapper blues have been moving in to the inlet sporadically on the daytime incoming tides. No rhyme or reason. Hot or miss. You guess is as good as ours. You get the picture.

Some stripers around at night in the Inlet. Floating fleas and live eels.

Croakers have pretty much left the Inlet and headed to the back bays.

Flounder on the Old Grounds (B Buoy and southeast). Cobia on Reef Site 11 and Fenwick shoals

08/20/2018 Mon

Cobia on the Fenwick Shoals

Sheepshead and triggerfish biting in the Inlet the last couple of days. Live sand fleas. The water is bath tub warm.

Still a few croakers around but most reports are they have moved back into the bays.

Striper bite is at night on eels and sand fleas. Its not a strong bite and its mostly shorts.

Pompano reported in the surf along with some spot and kingfish. Small blues reported on the surf as well.

Flounder can be found offshore east of the shipping channel in about 100-120 feet of water. Heavy Spro bucktails with squid strips or 6 inch Gulp grubs.

Good cobia bite on the Fenwick Shoals. Local angler John Burbage caught the pending DE state record last week. It weighed just over 79 pounds. Live eels have been the best bait.

08/10/2018 Fri

Hot, hot, hot!!!

The bad news - fishing has slowed down to a slooooow pick. The croaker bite has slowed down in the inlet due to very warm water.

A few kings on the beach with small blues mixed in.

The flounder haven moved off shore to the Old Grounds. Actually east of the Old Grounds in about 100 feet of water.

The Good news - all this warm water has brought some cobia and spanish mackerel to the near shore waters.

Black drum and triggerfish can be found along the rocks in the Inlet.

Fish are here but warm weather/water has slowed things down.

07/31/2018 Tue

Small blues, kings, and spot on the beach

Small blues, kings, and spot on the beach over the weekend.

Raining again now so we are dealing with dirty water again.

Black drum and triggerfish along the rocks in the Inlet.

Leon Martin (Leola PA) sent a pic of a 8 pound Black drum he caught in the Inlet on 7/28. It hit a sand flea.

Croakerfest 2018 in the Inlet continues. Flounder under them if you can get down to them.

07/25/2018 Wed

The Latest Craze...

Rex Davis (Honey Brook PA) sent in a pic of a 24 inch 12 pound sheephead he caught on the south side of the Inlet Sunday.

The latest craze is fishing live eels for sharks in the Inlet. 4-5 footers.

07/24/2018 Tue

Rainy weekend brings dirty water

Rainy windy weekend. So we have very dirty water.

Rain in the forecast for the next few days. Its going to make fishing tough.

Croaker and flounder around.

07/18/2018 Wed

Snappers & Croakers

Report of snapper blues in the Inlet this early afternoon.

Another customer reported catching small croakers on the beach at Conquest Road.

07/17/2018 Tue

Water is warming up!

Black drum, trigger fish and sheepshead reported in the Inlet.

Customer stopped in to weigh a 6 pound 14 ounce black drum yesterday. Caught on the end of the north rockpile with sand fleas.

Croakers are still here in the Inlet in good numbers. They are hitting squid strips, gulp, sand fleas and bloodworms.

Quite a few short flounder in the Inlet too. One customer reported 14 fish with 2 keepers yesterday.

What striped bass bite there is has been at night floating fleas and fishing live eels. Heat and boat traffic have the fish deep during the daytime.

Blues and shad on the daytime incoming tide on occasion.

Kingfish on the surf with plenty of sharks and skates.

07/14/2018 Sat

Found Some Flounders

Rocky just called in that there were croakers in the Inlet again this morning.

Snapper blues reported in the inlet yesterday on the first part of the outgoing tide before dark.

89 years young Martin Swartz (Lewisburg PA) caught a 3.5 pound flounder drifting in the Inlet yesterday on a minnow.

Customer reported bluefish on the beach in front of the store up to 20 inches yesterday.

Dan Rubert sent a pic of an 18 inch flounder he caught in the surf on Conquest road yesterday.

07/10/2018 Tue

Red Drum on the south side

Todd Shelly emailed us pics of two red drum he caught on the south side this morning.

They measured 27.5 and 29 inches. Pics are on Facebook and our Fishing Pictures Page.

07/05/2018 Thu

Croakers!!! Lots of em and the getting bigger!

Several people reported catching a cooler full in the Inlet yesterday.

Some flounder, mostly shorts, in the mix too.

Kingfish bite reported on Faithful Steward Crossing this morning.

07/04/2018 Wed

Hazy, Hot and Humid!!

Biggest change in the report is that the croakers are thick in the Inlet from the rockpiles back to the marinas. Gulp, bloodworms and squid are working.

Some flounder in the Inlet too. Mostly shorts with the odd keeper mixed in.

06/29/2018 Fri

New Delaware Tautog Regulations

Notice: Effective July 1 New Delaware Tautog Regulations - 4 fish a day 16 inches and season reopens July 1 and remains open through Dec 31 with no September closure.

Croakers in the Inlet!!!!

The striper bite is at night with the daytime heat and boat traffic driving them deep during the day.

A few small blues and shad around on the incoming tide during the day.

Flounder along the south wall past the campground.

Big kingfish up to 16 inches reported south of us. Myabe they will come visit.

Highlights from the weekend -

Croakers in the Inlet yesterday. In the 8-10 inch range

A few shad and small blues around on the incoming tide as well.

Not much of a striper bite reported lately.

A few flounder coming over the rail as well.

No flounder on the Old Grounds as yet but did hear about some a mile out past that.

Summer sharking has started on the beach. Please know the rules and by all means exercise some common sense and don't shark fish near swimmers or in front of houses (some people seem to be surprised that there are sharks in the water).

Otherwise, the surf is a mix of small stuff. A few kings but mostly sharks and skates.

Did see a nice catch of kings from the surf at herring point on Friday.

Netters are catching 2-3 pound blues in the Indian River Bay. A few croakers and spot starting to show up in the nets too.

06/12/2018 Tue

Water clearing up

Water is starting to clear up after the rain over the weekend.

A camera shy angler brought in a 7 pound flounder caught in the Inlet this morning on the south wall on a bucktail with gulp.

06/08/2018 Fri

Stripers floating live fleas at night

Report is with all the east northeast wind we have been having the bite has been better on the north jetty/pocket.

A couple of things to add to the report -

They have started picking up stripers floating live fleas at night.

Flounder on the south wall (past the camp ground) in the Inlet on lead heads with Gulp. 4 inch white swimming mullet.

Keeper spot up on the pier at the Cape the last few days.

Weekend wrap up-

Sunday was a wash out. Heavy winds and rain. Its nice out today (Monday). It will likely take a few tide cycles for the water to clear up.

Before the blow the guys willing to put the time in on the south rockpile at night east of the bridge get in to some keeper stripers (40 plus inches). Plugs and swim shads were the best baits.

A few shad are still running in the Inlet on the daytime incoming tide. We had also started to see some flounder coming over the rail as well.

Flounder action picked up in the Indian River Bay as well. There is a huge sand bar in the bay so be sure to stay in the marked channel. It is pretty bad. Its located on the way from the Inlet back towards Masseys so be careful.

The surf saw an uptick in kingfish action with shorty stripers and the occasional black drum in the mix.

Still catching black drum on the coral beds in the DE Bay.

Flounder bite has picked up in the Lewes canal.

Thresher sharks have moved in the to near shore waters. New pending state record brought in to OC over the weekend. 640 plus pounds

05/30/2018 Wed

Kingfish on the beach

Just got a couple of reports of decent catches of kingfish in the beach over the weekend. One Sunday from 3R's and the other Saturday on Fenwick.

05/29/2018 Tue

Utterly Random

Memorial Day weekend is in the rear view mirror. Plenty of people around. The fishing report can best be described as utterly random.

The anglers that are pulling 6-8 hour all nighters on both sides of the Inlet in the north and south pockets and walking the beach throwing plugs are catching. The pockets are where the jetty meets the beach.

Stage of the tide and wind directions that have produced have all been highly variable. In short, what worked last night might not work tonite.

And on top of that some nights its mostly shorts, others they are mixed and then other nights its mostly keepers. The only constant is they are using plugs and swim baits.

The same can be said on the beach. Which beach, tide and wind are best is anyones guess. Its random. No hotspot. This means you just got to put in the time.

Its been a mixed bag of kingfish, small blues, shorty stripers and black drum.

There has been a decent bluefish and striper bite up on the Cape by the pier. It had been on the top of the tide in the middle of the day.

Flounder fishing in the Indian River Bay has been hit and miss. The bay has really shoaled up. The aids to navigation have been updated so be sure to stay in the marked channel or you will likely run aground.

05/23/2018 Wed

Shad in the Inlet

Quick update before we get tied up in the tent sale.

Shad in the Inlet today on the incoming tide. A few stripers here and there but nothing like we had Saturday and
Sunday nights.

A couple of black drum, short stripers and small blues reported from the beach over the last couple of days.

Bigger blues and Stripers up on the Cape by the pier lately.

Not going to be able to update the report over the weekend with the sale going on.

05/21/2018 Mon

Memorial Day Weekend is almost here

Memorial Day Weekend is almost here.

Very good striper bite Saturday night in the Inlet. Numerous fish over 40 inches reported. They tried to keep it quiet but the word got out. They were catching them on plugs and swim baits. The south pocket was the hot spot.

It was a perfect convergence of a waxing moon, over cast weather, changing barometric pressure, tide and Mercury being aligned with Uranus. Seriously, it was perfect conditions so we hope you got in on it.

Shad have been in the Inlet during the daytime. Scattered reports of blues on the tide and a few shorty stripers during the daytime.

The surf is offering a mixed bag of shorty stripers, black drum, puffers, sand perch, small blues, sharks and skates.
Bloodworms, fresh bunker and surf clams are the baits of choice. The fish are scattered up and down the beach. So pick and place and have fun.

The seabass bite on the nearshore fishing grounds has been excellent. No word on threshers yet. That will likely change this week.

Our Tent Sale is this coming weekend. Be sure to stop in for a great deal on gear to get your season started.

Put the Full Moon on May 29 on your calendar. It is setting up to be good fishing at night for striped bass in the Inlet.

05/15/2018 Tue

Shad in the Inlet

Shad in the Inlet the last couple of days.

A couple of guys have been walking the beach after dark throwing plugs and picking at the striped bass. A few keepers in the mix.

Black drum bite up on Broadkill/Beach plumb.

Strpers and bluefish reported on 3R's this morning. Bloodworms.

Weather forecast for the next three days is rain. Weekend looks better.

05/12/2018 Sat

Surf Fishing Tournament Results

Old Inlet Spring c
Hosted By Old Inlet Bait and Tackle
Sponsored By Hi-Seas/AFW and Okuma

Reminder- Tautog season is closed in Delaware waters from 5/12 through 7/16. Reopening on July 17.

05/09/2018 Wed

Bluefish on the beach

Bluefish on the beach at daybreak. Another customer fished all morning and had 6 stripers to 24 inches in the suds on outgoing tide. All on cut bunker.

Fresh bunker due in today around 1pm.

05/07/2018 Mon

Spring Surf Fishing Tournament coming soon

Its tournament week. Our Spring Surf Fishing Tournament will be held on Saturday May 12. Tournament packets can be picked up on Friday from noon til 8pm and on Saturday from 530am til 7am.

Weather forecast looks good and there are some fish around.

Bigger blues hit the beach up on the Cape Saturday and Sunday. The best action was between the pier and the point. Shaun Smith had a ten pounder on Sunday. Matthew Oneal sent a pic of a ten plus pounder on Saturday.

The south pocket has been the hot spot by the Indian River Inlet. John Mandrachia reported some nice blues Saturday and Sunday mornings.

Sammy C sent a pic of a 30 inch striper caught on the beach Sunday night on black and purple plugs.

The Inlet is offering a mixed bag on small blues, small stripers (with a few more keepers mixed in) and shad. Some keeper tautog reported as well.

Flounder can be had in the south shore slough back toward the VFW. Bubble gum beach has been somewhat productive as well.

The south wall back by the houses has been a popular drift for a couple of days now.

The surf is picking up with kings, blues, shorty stripers and black drum.

05/02/2018 Wed

Black drum in the surf

Small blues and stripers reported in the south pocket this morning.

Black drum reported on the surf as well as kings.

We have fresh bunker.

Shad just reported this afternoon in the Inlet top of the tide/first part of the outgoing.

04/30/2018 Mon

We finally had a nice weekend for a change!

We finally had a nice weekend for a change!! And we have great weather in the forecast!!

Inlet report - short stripers, a few blues and a couple of keeper tautog.

David Ocasio landed an 8 pound bluefish in the Inlet on the north side by the handicap pier using a Gotcha Plug on Saturday.

They are starting to pick up flounder in the Indian River Bay. One local boat limited out on Friday. The minimum size for flounder is now 16.5 inches with a four fish limit.

New flash!! We have live sand fleas!!

Cast for a Cure 2018 Tournament Recap

12 teams comprising more than 40 anglers fished Saturday on Conquest and Faithful Steward beaches north of the Inlet.

Team Surf Casters took first place with 53 points scoring 2 kingfish and a 23 inch black drum.

Team Sea Air Googans placed second with 39 points scoring 3 kingish.

Team Shoulda Been Here Yesterday came in third with 2 scoring kings for 29 points.

Largest fish of the tournament was the 23 inch drum.

Largest Striped Bass of the tournament was a 21 incher caught by Team Fish Stalkers.

Bill Weichardt caught a15 inch king with a 9 inch girth that earned him a citation at 1.5 pounds. This is one of the biggest kings we have seen in years.

There were plenty of short stripers around but no bluefish. Bloodowrms were the hot bait on small double hook pill rigs.

04/25/2018 Wed

Short stripers in the Inlet

Sorry for the delay in getting the report updated. Monday morning greeted us with a computer crash.

Its a slow pick right now. Water temp is slowly creeping up but mother nature is refusing to take her meds.

Cool, humid and foggy here on the beach today.

Short stripers in the Inlet and on the beach. They can get thick and then turn right off.

A few blues reported in the inlet and on the beach but nothing special yet.

One keeper flounder caught in the Inlet over the weekend.

Nicer hopefully more spring like weather in the forecast for the weekend. Lets hope it busts loose!!

04/20/2018 Fri

30" Bluefish caught in Fenwick

Bluefish up to 30 inches caught in South Fenwick yesterday morning.

Another couple had 12 shorty stripers on the beach at 3R's yesterday.

Report of a keeper striper caught on 3R's yesterday evening.

04/14/2018 Sat

Short Stripers in the inlet

We are getting numerous reports from customers that they are bailing short stripers in the inlet pretty much regardless of tide. Catch numbers have ranged from 13-75 fish. Small spoons, bucktails and storm lures have all worked.

The pocket on the south side is holding fish.

Short stripers and the occasional bluefish reported form the surf.

We will be open 7am-3pm on Sunday!! Open til 5pm today.

04/11/2018 Wed

Short stripers in the north pocket

Short stripers in the north pocket this morning. On plugs.

Saw on one boat headed out flounder fishing in the Indian River bay this morning.

04/10/2018 Tue

Bluefish reported on the beach

Things are very slowly starting to get going. Been out of the office for two weeks so lets recap the reports submitted in that time:

A few short stripers have been caught in the Inlet. Bluefish reported on the beach in Fenwick and up at the Cape. Heard a report of stripers on Assateague and Cape Charles.

Jersey shops reporting stripers and blues as well.

So its starting to pop. Water temp is in the low 40's. About 5 degrees lower than last year.

Pretty spring weather coming later this week. Purple Henbit in the fields so flounder not for away!!

03/26/2018 Mon

Fresh bunker & Live Green Crabs coming soon

The Bad News - its blowing northeast again. The Good News - the forecast is calling for weather that may just resemble spring later this week.

We have fresh bunker ordered for Friday morning.

Live green crabs could be here as early as Saturday.

So get ready!!!!

03/23/2018 Fri

Dear Spring: Please Sprung!

We survived yet another Northeaster. And there is another one on the way. Northeast wind forecasted Sunday-Tuesday next week.

Dear Spring: Please Sprung!!

The Old Inlet Webmaster will be out of the office (in a much warmer climate) from Tuesday March 27 until Monday April 9.

Please call the shop for the latest report and/or fishing stories.

03/12/2018 Mon

Skates on the beach

Nice weather had a few people out last weekend. The report from the beach was skates. Lots of the them. Horseshoe crabs and dolphins around. The presence of dolphins means there is bait around.

The first ospreys have arrived. Another sign of spring.

Another storm passing through early in the week and then the forecast looks decent after that. Somebody needs to catch a fish!!

03/08/2018 Thu

Tides are still really high

The good news - It's March and we did not get flooded by the two storms that passed through last week. Dafodills (sp?) are starting to bloom.

The Bad News - forecast has freezing and near freezing temperatures at night for the next week. That is not going to help the water temp get up where we need it to be to get the fishing action started. So, all we can do is wait.

Our best guess is two to three weeks if we are lucky.

Tides are still really high. Water is going to be really dirty on the outgoing tides. Full of march rack and debris.

03/01/2018 Thu

State Park beach crossings will be closed this afternoon

Notice - State Park beach crossings will be closed this afternoon (Thursday) in preparation for the incoming weather. We will let you know when they reopen.

02/27/2018 Tue

Live bloodworms, live night crawlers and live minnows

Signs of spring - we have live bloodworms, live night crawlers and live minnows (small for perch/fresh water)

02/21/2018 Wed

White perch and yellow perch around

The weather has warmed up and the phone is ringing! "Whats biting?"

The answer right now is "nothing yet?" Just cuz the sun is out it does not mean the rides are open. But seriously, there is reason for optimism.

The water temp is up above 40 degrees and the mild weather should help it get to the mid 40's sooner rather than later. The 15 day forecast does not have any freezing temps in it so let's take a guess as the when the fish will start biting.

Striped bass will be the first back. We have a population of resident fish (short males) that will start to feed when the water temp gets over 43. They will be a bit sluggish at first but will get more active as the water warms. Our best guess is the second week of March.

Flounder will be up next. Our records show that the first flounder has been caught as early as March 20 - our guess is the last week of March.

Bluefish are next. Our fearless forecast is mid April.

So what that leave us to fish for until the fish start biting? There are some white perch and yellow perch around now and we are hearing that there are some nice bass, crappie and pickerel in the local ponds.

We got confirmation from DNREC last night that there will be no change in the striped bass regulations in 2018. A change is anticipated in 2019.

Flounder, sebass and tautog regs will all have changes thids year and we will pass those along as soon as we know.

02/09/2018 Fri

Yellow perch caught yesterday

Finally something to report. Abel Murray sent a pic of a yellow perch he caught yesterday. He was fishing up around Milford. It hit a live minnow.

Ocean water temp was 37 last weekend for the polar plunge. Good news is the long range forecast to does have a lot of over night freezing temps so that will help warm the water up over the next month. 43 degrees in the magic number for striped bass to start feeding.

02/03/2018 Sat

Think spring!

7 degrees here today and the little rodent saw his shadow.

Winter, over it. Think spring!!

Have not been updating the report because there is nothing going on. Water temp is in the mid 30's. Needs to be 43 or better to get anything biting.

Thats's gonna be a while the way this winter is going. Two warm days is not going to do it. It will take weeks of warm days.

Sorry cant be more optimistic....

01/20/2018 Sat

Heat Wave!

Heat wave. Its in the 50's today. Break out the speedo!

A few people trying for tautog in the Inlet. No striper action now that the water temp is in the 30's.

In the 60's today. A few people out fishing in the warm weather yesterday. Nothing happening.

The deep freeze we experienced for over a week sent the water temps down in the low to mid 30's. A couple of days of warm weather is not going to bring the temp up enough to matter and we have cold weather in the forecast for next week. So think spring!!

Lots of fog coming off the water and the melting snow.

Ice flows in the Inlet as much of the bays had frozen over. Several buoys dragged off station by ice. Coast Guard is tending to them.